No Man's Land
by slenderpanda597
Summary: Jason is fighting the disarray his life has been thrown into after the loss of his mum. Bernie is fighting the lack of purpose her life has after the loss of her commission. Serena is fighting the loneliness in her life after the loss of her family. The three end up meeting on no man's land.
1. Chapter 1

(a/n – this is an idea I had that wouldn't let me go. It is a break from my usual style so I would appreciate nicely constructed feedback. Also, I've tried to be as accurate as possible regarding the timelines before this fic becomes canon divergent, but there may be some minor errors. I've not seen any of the pre-Bernie arriving episodes, though maybe one day I will. Please do let me know what you think.)

No Man's Land

Chapter One

There are many people Jason likes. There are a few that he dislikes. Jason interacts with those he likes, and ignores those he dislikes. It's just that simple. Well, nearly. He likes Mary Beard and Gary Lineker but he cannot interact with those in person because they are famous and he is not. Instead he records their shows. He does not record the shows of people he does not like. This includes, but is not limited to, Deal Or No Deal, The Only Way Is Essex and Eastenders. The other exception to the rule are those people Jason really likes. Some might even say adores. There aren't many of those. But his Mum is most definitely one of them.

Jason loves his mother. She's a blackbird with her lovely laugh and song and personality. She works in the newsagents at the airport and lets him read the magazines. He especially likes the ones about true crime and the ones about transport. They're his favourites. If she needs to unpack any boxes of new products he carries them for her and acts out World's Strongest Man. When his mum has finished work for the day they go home and eat their dinner together, which his mum will take from the correct freezer drawer depending upon which day of the week it is. It is Jason's idea of perfection. He loves his mum, and she loves him. And every night as they go to bed she promises that she will never let him down. She promises that she will be the best mother he could ever have. Jason reminds her that he only ever will have one mother, and that's her. She smiles at him and he smiles at her, and Jason sleeps happily, his model tanks keeping guard on the shelf at the end of his bed.

Jason wakes up and reaches out for his bedside lamp only to find the comforting orb in the shape of a globe is no longer there. He wakes up a little more and stabs himself in the eye with his glasses trying to put them on in the dark and calls out for his Mum because it hurts a lot and she will be able to make things better. All he gets in response is an angry shout from the room next door telling him to shut up whining because it's four in the flipping morning. Well, the exact word used is a bit different, but Jason's Mum hates him swearing so he doesn't do it. It registers that there shouldn't be anyone next door, and that's when Jason realises where he is and remembers what's happened. He's been living in this new place for a week and a half now since his Mum's funeral, which was nearly a month after she died because the hospital kept her body and then there was nobody except Jason to claim it and he was too sad to do that. Everything is different and everything is uncomfortable and everything is wrong because he needs his Mum and she just isn't there and Jason doesn't know what to so he rolls out of bed and wraps his arms around his head and rocks himself back and forth on the tiny floor space available in his tiny new home.

At 9:18 the next morning Lynn finds him on the floor and wakes him gently. He thinks she's his mother at first and when he realises she's not he lashes out in terror, his right fist connecting with her cheek with a resounding crack. That makes him feel guilty because he likes Lynn, she's nice and has been sorting out everything since his Mum died. On the whole, she's not done anything wrong. Except put him in his current accommodation. Lynn smiles through the pain and guides him into the shower, tells him that she'll pop by later on to chat with him. Jason asks what time that will be. She tells him it will be between three and four. Jason would like something more specific but understands that she is busy and not everyone keeps to a schedule as well as he does. He sits by himself in his room as the hours pass by, with only a cereal bar and a three week old copy of BBC History Magazine to keep him company. He's read it cover to cover four times now, but now Mum doesn't work at the newsagents anymore, he doesn't know where to get a recent copy unless he asks Lynn to buy it like she got him this one. But this current copy was a present and he knows he would need to buy the recent copy all by himself. The thought of going into an unfamiliar shop without his Mum scares him a little bit.

Lynn returns at 3:29 with another person who she introduces as Katrina. Katrina is one of Lynn's work colleagues, and she's going to help Lynn and Jason to find Jason a new home. A new home with a new person. Jason is confused, and they explain that they think he might enjoy some company from another adult who can help him with things he finds difficult. Jason tells them he is not a child. They explain that they understand that, but want him to meet some of these people anyway. Jason decides that a house with satellite television sounds much better than his current lodgings, so agrees to meet some new people.

First, he meets Sally. She seems okay and they talk about films for a while but she likes soppy romantic movies whereas Jason likes ones based in the past like Schindler's List. Sally tells him that's a bit of a sad film and maybe he should try a happier film like Despicable Me. Jason tells her that he's seen it and he hated all the yellow things because they don't exist and also the tall man in it was no substitute for the mother of the children and Sally flushes a little bit. Jason tells her as much, says her pink skin looks silly with her awful shade of lipstick and that's when Lynn and Katrina decide that's enough for today and Sally can leave. Jason tells them he liked Sally, but she seemed stupid. Lynn smiles.

Next, he meets James. James is nice and knows a lot about the Premier League so he and Jason get on just fine. They have two meetings in Jason's room with Lynn and Katrina present, which seem to be successful. On their third meeting, Lynn and Katrina take Jason to the park to meet James for a game of football. When they reach the park, James approaches them with a brown dog at his heels who he introduces as Lulu. Lulu is a chocolate Labrador and is very friendly, James says. Jason bends to say hello to Lulu and she licks his face, which disgusts Jason. Her breath smells. Still, he likes James so he lets that slide. Then Lulu joins in with football, and because she is a dog she cannot play properly and ends up being more of a trip hazard who Jason spends his time desperately trying to avoid. Jason thinks he is clumsy enough as it is without adding an unpredictable dog into the game. Jason leaves after half an hour, and tells Lynn and Katrina that Lulu is too scary and he does not want to see James again.

Lynn and Katrina wait a few months before telling Jason that they think he might like to meet Alan. Jason asks if Alan has a dog. Lynn says he doesn't. Jason agrees to meet Alan. Alan is nice. He knows a bit about history, though it is less war and more Ancient Rome but that's okay. Jason has been to the local museum enough times to have a sufficient knowledge of Ancient Rome based upon their small collection of artefacts. He also remembers a piece in BBC History Magazine and a Mary Beard documentary on the topic. Jason meets Alan three times and is very excited because he thinks that maybe he will get to move in with Alan soon. Move out of his horrible dwelling. Then Lynn turns up unannounced and tells him that Alan will not be able to see him anymore. She tells him that she is very sorry but Alan has had a stroke. Jason narrows his eyes in thought and tells Lynn that she should not be sorry to him, she should be sorry to Alan because Alan is the one who is ill. Also, he tells Lynn, she should call it ischaemia because that is its proper name. Stroke is what you do to cats or dogs which are friendlier than Lulu. Ischaemia is a serious medical problem. Lynn agrees and asks Jason if he has made any friends since he moved in. Jason says no. The person next door swears too much and the person across the hall spends their time delivering icing sugar in little bags to people but would not share with Jason when he wanted to make a cake for what would have been his Mum's birthday. Lynn makes a note of something in her pad and Jason is about to ask what she is writing when Katrina arrives.

Katrina apologises for being late, tells Lynn she was held up trying to find someone for Berenice Wolfe to accommodate. Lynn sighs knowingly and before Jason can ask who Berenice Wolfe is they both turn to him and ask him if he is happy. He tells them he is not and he wants to move out and he wants his Mum and asks why everyone he likes becomes sick. They tell him that isn't true, but then Lynn also gently tells him that there is nobody else he could move in with at the moment. She asks if he could reconsider his judgement on Lulu. Jason tells them no, and then tells them they are lying because Katrina just said Berenice Wolfe had spare accommodation. They share a glance at this and Katrina says Berenice might not be the best person for Jason. Jason, however, will not take their excuses. He has decided that he wants to move out and if this Berenice Wolfe has room, it makes logical sense for him to see if he likes her. Lynn and Katrina agree, and tell Jason that all being well Berenice will accompany them to see him at 11am on Friday. Jason smiles happily.

It is immediately apparent that Berenice is not like the other people Jason has met. Jason realises this as soon as he sees her. He immediately asks why her arm is in a brace across her chest and Katrina tells him that is not an appropriate question. Berenice, on the other hand, tells Jason that it is because it is injured and is taking time to heal. Jason tells Katrina it was a valid question. He then asks Berenice how she injured her arm. Berenice explains that she was in an accident in her previous job, one which has left her left side a little worse for wear. She has to use a cane when walking for extended periods, and cannot currently use her left hand. Her bruises and surgical scars are starting to heal. Jason listens carefully, and is annoyed by the fact that Berenice has not yet said what her job was. He asks her. Berenice tells him she was a surgeon in the military. Jason grins.

The required meeting goes on for longer than scheduled, but Jason finds he does not mind. He would much rather talk about the ins and outs of tank engineering through the ages with someone who can actually drive one. He would only have been sat rereading his history magazine otherwise. It turns out Berenice is a Major, and was blown up by an IED, and likes to be called Bernie. Jason nods at this and asks her more questions, an endless stream of them crossing his mind. Eventually, Katrina interrupts to say that the meeting is going to have to end because she and Lynn have a schedule to get back to. Jason wants to ask if Major Bernie can stay while they go but she is already standing and accepting a lift home. As she leaves, Jason shouts after her. He asks if she has a dog. Major Bernie laughs for the first time all afternoon and tells him that she does not have a dog. Katrina leaves with Bernie, and Jason stops Lynn from following for a few moments. He tells her that he likes Major Bernie, and asks to move in with her. Lynn smiles and tells him that he still has to have other meetings with Berenice first to be absolutely sure. Jason frowns, and asks her to make sure the next ones are as soon as possible. Lynn tells him she'll be in touch.

The second meeting takes place the very next week. Major Bernie has brought some of her medals with her because she thought Jason might like to see them. He smiles brightly. He does like seeing them. Major Bernie explains how she earned them and Jason tells her she is possibly the bravest person he has ever met. She says that's probably not true but Jason says his Mum used to say that anyone who could continue working after seeing so many of their friends die had to be brave. Jason says that's why he didn't join the military despite wanting to. That, and the fact he thought he would miss his Mum. He goes quiet for a bit and tries to battle with the loss which he knows has happened but he cannot quite get his head around. He doesn't see Bernie raise a hand to stop Lynn from cutting in. She reaches across and pats his shoulder gently, tells him that he wouldn't have liked the army because he is clearly a young man who is very intelligent, and there are not many chances to catch up on Mary Beard out in the desert. Jason asks if she likes Mary Beard. Major Bernie says she does but she has to catch up on all of the ones she missed whilst serving. Jason looks at her and asks if she's ever been to Holby City Museum. She tells him she has not, as she is new to Holby since her medical discharge. Jason thinks this is outrageous and says as much. He asks if she would like him to show her round the museum sometime because he knows every artefact they have. Major Bernie tells him she would like that very much.

The day of their trip to the museum, Jason gets up very early. He sets his alarm an hour earlier to allow time to shower and practice tying his tie several times before he decides it is perfect. Today he is going to make a brilliant impression on Major Bernie. He is going to dazzle her with his knowledge of Holby City Museum and its artefacts. He is going to make her want to live with him. As he is leaving, he sees some people at the doorway across the hall. Two of them are police officers. Jason shrugs, and waves to Lynn who has just parked up outside.

It takes a whole day to get round the museum. This is down to Jason's thorough explanation of absolutely everything, and Major Bernie's physical handicap. While her leg is much better than it was, she says she still struggles with extended periods of time. Especially in a building as old as Holby City Museum which has many steps and few lifts. Jason doesn't mind. Usually he hates dawdlers who take up the pavement when he needs to get past. But Major Bernie is a veteran and also Jason likes her, so he helps her down the steeper stairs. He feels useful, like when he used to carry his Mum's shopping bags and she'd call him Holby's Strongest Man. He likes feeling like this.

Lynn and Katrina left them to it a while ago, promising to arrive back at the museum for 5pm to pick Jason up (and Major Bernie if she likes). Jason enjoys it being just the two of them, he thinks that Major Bernie feels more comfortable when they're not sat around. Jason wonders if this means she likes him enough to want him to move in with her. They're looking at some taxidermies when he decides to ask. He likes the stuffed birds and assorted British wildlife, but is far more interested in the historical exhibits. Major Bernie is reading a factsheet about cranes when Jason asks.

"Why don't you want me to live with you?" Major Bernie stops and turns to him.

"What makes you think I don't?"

"Lynn and Katrina haven't mentioned it to me so you mustn't have said you liked me."

"I like you very much Jason." She seems confident in this.

"So why am I not allowed to live with you?"

"I think the problem is more me being allowed to live with you, Jason." Major Bernie sighs and stares the taxidermy crane in its glass eyes. Jason is confused. She continues. "I'm disabled. I have physiotherapy every Monday at 5pm and counselling every Wednesday at 10am. I struggle to get around the house sometimes, and can barely make a cup of tea for myself nowadays thanks to my blasted arm." Her voice trails off and she looks sad. Jason doesn't want her to be sad.

"That's okay because I can add them into a schedule because they're the same every week. And I'm excellent at making tea. My Mum always said I was the best tea maker in the world. Though I doubt that because there are billions of people in the world who never made my Mum a cup of tea so she couldn't have judged properly. And if you're struggling I can lift or move things or help you!" Jason realises he's breaking the quiet of the museum so lowers his voice again. "You help me when I have my hard times and I'll help you, Major Bernie. Please can I live with you? I really don't like my current home."

Major Bernie looks away from the crane and back to Jason, lips twitching.

"That sounds like an excellent plan, Jason."

Bernie is a cripple. She hates herself. Once upon a time three months ago she was suturing wounds and amputating legs in the back of jeeps travelling across the desert. Now her left arm is strapped to her chest, she needs a cane to walk to the supermarket and if she rolls onto her left side while she sleeps it takes a week to recover from the pain. And, to make things even worse, she has to get a job. The government will not give her any aid while they deem she is fit enough to have a job. Bernie has no problem with getting a job, if that job is trauma surgery. But no. Her options are limited, with her therapist recommending that from her very limited options she becomes a carer for a while in order to ensure she stays social. Bernie has absolutely no intention of actually taking up a position. She vows she will sign to the agency then resolutely decline every offer by being as difficult as possible. This will be the only time she uses her current disability to get out of a terrible situation. Bernie is not going to look after anyone when she can barely look after herself.

Then she meets Jason. She turns up to the meeting ready to smile and nod and never see them again. But Jason is bright and sparky and there's just something about him that chips away at her war-hardened heart. When Katrina from the agency calls and arranges a date for a second meeting, Bernie is aware that if she agrees she's making the option of becoming an actual carer more realistic. She finds she doesn't care and instead slips her medals in her bag to show him. It is when he invites her to the museum with him that Bernie knows that she wants to look after Jason, come hell or high water. She likes him.

Katrina seems worried, and Bernie gets it. They want to make sure Jason doesn't end up in a worse situation than his current one. And Bernie is a grumpy old war veteran who had to retire before her time. It seems implausible that she would be a suitable carer for vulnerable yet strong Jason. But they seem to get on well. They both want to trial a care period, and the agency therefore nod and put the motions in place, informing Bernie that Jason will move in to her bungalow for a six month trial period. If they are successful, Bernie will go down as Jason's designated carer on official documents, and she will be in full time employment again, as it were.

The trial period is a success, on the whole. For six months Bernie manages to not screw up too often and Jason manages to learn how she takes her tea. Every Monday and Wednesday they visit Holby City Museum or the local library, where Jason remains while Bernie gets the hospital shuttle bus to her appointments and back. Jason becomes enthralled by the two koi carp Bernie has in the pond in her back garden. She tells him the splodged one is called Cameron, and the entirely golden one is Charlotte. Every evening at 7pm sharp they settle down with cups of tea and watch Mary Beard followed by World's Strongest Man. Bernie had never seen the show before she met Jason, but is now an expert on the many events. She is also flattered by how well Jason seems to think she would do, if she weren't so badly injured.

It isn't perfect, but Bernie thinks this is probably what having a child is like. Sometimes she forgets to do the washing meaning Jason doesn't have the right socks to wear on a Saturday. Sometimes Jason doesn't remember to write milk on the shopping list so when the supermarket delivery comes they still haven't got everything in. They learn to live with one another and help one another and tolerate one another. Having Jason around certainly passes the time she would have otherwise spent wallowing, Bernie thinks.

After the six month trial is past and Bernie is cleared and officially Jason's carer, they both begin to really settle down. The dusting gets neglected because there aren't fortnightly visits from the blasted agency people anymore. Bernie never saw the point of dusting. She'd slept on desert floors covered in sand and muck and blood, so what did a bit of her own flaked skin matter in the scheme of things?

Bernie realises that Jason gets bored around the house, and she herself is a bit too now she is recovering well. She sees a leaflet on the noticeboard at the hospital one day and boots up her laptop when she gets home, asks Jason to have a look. He loves the idea. The local college do adult classes ranging in a wide range of qualifications. Theoretically, Jason could study there for two years and come out with qualifications in history and general science. The courses are have adapted teaching, suited towards people with additional learning needs. Jason loves the thought of being able to have qualifications in the things he loves. Bernie likes seeing him so happy, and also thinks that she can get a gym membership and go during his college hours. They book themselves a meeting with the college to enrol Jason for the oncoming year.

It soon becomes apparent that the idea was an excellent one. Every day at 8:30 Bernie and Jason get off the bus outside college and Jason enters while Bernie crosses the road and on every day except Wednesday walks the short distance to the fitness centre, where she spends the morning working out in the gym and attending the yoga class her physiotherapist recommended. She finishes feeling sweaty and sore but has a large bowl of pasta in the café afterwards to make herself feel a bit better. She then spends the afternoon reading at home, or going to her physiotherapy appointment if it is Monday. She can feel herself getting stronger, and relishes the motivation she has to get herself back walking without needing a cane. She's got a secret desire to take Jason to Stonehenge over summer, but knows she needs to be confident in her physical shape before she reveals the plan to him. She'd hate to disappoint him.

By winter, Bernie is confident that she will be able to tell Jason of her plans by March. That would give them enough time to plan and go in July. He's loving his courses, and frequently tells her fun facts he's picked up about German Blitzkrieg or Stalin's bunker. One especially chilly Monday in January, Bernie is coming out of the hospital after her physiotherapy appointment. Her left hand side is feeling even achier than usual due to the cold, so she is trying very hard to walk properly. She's just walking past the Wyvern Wing when her right foot comes into contact with a patch of black ice, and her left gives way in shock as she tries to lean her weight on it.

She wakes up to the harsh glare of hospital strip lighting and Jason's voice yelling her name from somewhere. She pulls herself up on the bed and smiles as he walks briskly across the ward to her, taking note of the signs saying not to run. He sits beside her and tells her he had been waiting at home for an hour and a half before a nurse phoned to say that she'd been taken up to the Acute Admissions Unit. Bernie assures him she's fine and asks a passing doctor when she will be able to go. The bald headed man smiles at her, his glasses shining. He looks at her chart and says so he'll go and find her the discharge forms. Bernie turns to Jason and asks if he would be kind enough to go and find her a wheelchair and also the location of a phone so that they can call a taxi. He nods and exits the ward. Bernie is thankful that she never brought up her plan to go to Stonehenge. That's going to have to be pushed back now. Stupid, crippled leg.

A brunette appears at the foot of her bed and smiles kindly. Bernie feels something she thought she'd never feel again ignite ever so slightly in her stomach. She's not felt this since Alex back in the army before that fell to pieces. Before that, there'd only been Marie in university. This woman is very pretty, and explains that the other doctor – Bernie forgets his name – has been called away so she'll do the forms instead. Bernie nods mutely, trying to drink in the sight before her. The woman is one of the finest Bernie thinks she's ever seen, or ever will see. She's probably the best thing about Bernie having slipped. Their eyes meet as Bernie is formally discharged, and Bernie is sure time stands still, just for a moment. But all too soon the bleeping of a pager sounds and the woman dashes off towards theatre. Jason arrives soon after, and helps Bernie into a wheelchair down to the entrance where they get their taxi home.

Bernie is grumpy. She's fed up of being back where she started. It'll take her another year to get back to where she was before the stupid black ice accident occurred. She's snappish and moody and Jason tries very hard to be accommodating, but Bernie fears he might complain about her and the agency will take him away. She couldn't bear that. Jason arrives back from college one day to find her cocooned on the sofa, empty chocolate wrappers scattered around her. He sits in the armchair and looks her in the eye.

"Major Bernie?" He still calls her by her proper title, and Bernie has learned to accept it.

"Yes Jason?" She hopes he isn't going to ask if they can watch Match Of The Day, then feels guilty because it is his house too.

"I was talking to Amy today who was saying that her Mum fell down the stairs once and had her leg in plaster. I asked what she did and she said that she did what her Mum asked but also so did her Dad." Bernie isn't sure where Jason is going but listens as he continues. "So I think you need a husband." Bernie feels herself flushing. She had vowed that she would tell Jason about her romantic preferences someday, but this is not how she imagined it going. She coughs slightly.

"I don't think it works like that, Jason."  
"What about a boyfriend then?"  
"It doesn't work that way because I don't like men Jason."

"I'm a man. Don't you like me?" He looks hurt. She corrects herself.

"Sorry Jason that's not what I meant. What I meant was that I am not attracted to men." Jason nods.

"That's alright then. You need a girlfriend." Bernie isn't sure what to say so she says.

"And how would I go about getting one of those while I'm like this?"

"Good point. I'll keep a lookout for you." Bernie just nods. Somehow she isn't sure Jason will be the one to lead her to any future partners she may have.

For the past few years, Serena's life has definitely taken a turn for the worse. Her daughter has moved to university, and Serena is lucky if she gets a call once a month with an update as to how her daughter is doing. She has a feeling that she is being used as a money tree at times. She has no idea what a foam party is but what she does know is that her daughter needs money to buy clothes and drinks for one that is coming up. Serena doesn't dare ask what a foam party is because then she might be treated to the patronising tone her daughter only uses when trying to emphasise how old and out of touch her mother is in comparison to Edward's embryo of a, like, totally-hip and cool wife. Not that Serena cares.

No, Serena thinks. Edward has his darling child bride Liberty to put up with his drinking and cheating and snoring. Serena has had many satisfactory partners since then. Angus the most boring board member ever to grace Holby City Hospital. Shauna the regional manager for a beauty company who Serena met at that makeup party in Stepney. Berenice, the smouldering woman with an injured leg who Serena unfortunately had not managed to date but has thought a lot about all the same. Serena's post-divorce romantic life hasn't exactly been bleak. All in all, Serena thinks, she should be more grateful for what she's got.

Except she's really not. Her mother is ill and watching her decline into a state where she can only call Serena by the name Marjorie for some reason is not something she ever saw herself doing. But she does. She cares for her mother whilst being deputy CEO of Holby City Hospital whilst running the Acute Admissions Unit. Sleep is overrated, anyway. It hurts to see her Mum so ill. She knows that she and her mother have never really been close, Serena is the first to admit that she was a daddy's girl through and through. But her mother had always been a strong and proud figure who Serena held as an icon of just what women could be capable of. Adrienne McKinnie had fought hard for Serena, through French summers and Harvard winters. If Serena had needed her mother, then her mother would have tried her damned hardest to be there. Serena hopes Elinor sees her in that way some day.

There's another problem. She's not yet told Elinor about her grandmother. The girl is far too caught up in her studies and it is upsetting to see Adrienne in such a way. Serena ignores the scars littered across her back and shoulders from her mother's rings, and tries not to dwell on the bruising Adrienne has got when she lashes out at Serena. All in all, it is a terrible situation to be in. But Serena tells herself that she is strong, and she will cope.

Serena is accused by those she holds dear – Raf and Fletch – of abusing her mother. The truth comes out about just how poorly her dear old Mummy is. Adrienne dies. Elinor accuses her of not being open enough. Serena gets drunk and scatters her mother's ashes in the peace garden. It isn't the most dignified she's ever been, but she can't find it in her to care. She knows she constantly walks a dangerous line between sad and depressed, and tries hard to stay on the easier side. She doesn't want to go back to where she used to be.

Serena meets Robbie. Robbie the Bobbie, as Fletch lovingly calls him. He's strong and he's loyal and he's more than passable in bed. He's not exactly the London New Year's fireworks display but Serena doesn't mind, tells herself she can and will settle for the local park bonfire night display instead. He treats her nicely and helps her to forget about all the bad things going on in her life, just a little bit. He brings her pastries and takes her for weekends away and surprises her with flowers. On the whole, he's one of the better partners she's had. He understands shift work because of his job in the police, and has a stable pension plan lined up for when he retires. He's a very sensible choice of partner. Serena is beginning to realise that when you're at the stage of life which she is – divorced, overworked and menopausal – the options really are rather limited. Robbie can and will have to be enough. Who is she to tell herself that she deserves better?

She thinks that her mother dying is nothing to worry about as time goes on. But it turns out that it is. It turns out that Adrienne had an entire secret side to her that nobody knew about. Serena has a big sister and the thought thrills her. She's always been an only child, and had always dreamed of having another child to keep Elinor company, though it never came to be. She wonders what her sister is like. She wonders if they'll have a lot in common. She hopes so.

Robbie tells her that he can ask his friend to do some digging on her sister, and Serena isn't sure. It all sounds a bit odd and she's also a bit nervous about the thought of meeting someone who shares her mother with her but didn't know. It's like a whole new part of the jigsaw of her life has been added, but she's not sure how the pieces fit together to make it all work again. In the end, she relents and lets Robbie speak to his friend. She thinks he's harmless enough, and it really is quite charming that he wants to help her to come to terms with everything that is going on. She lets him do his thing and then forgets about it as she goes about her work.

Marjorie Haynes is dead. Serena's sister who she hasn't even known about all that long is dead. It figures, she thinks. Just another person to add to the list of those who make her feel lonely. Robbie takes her to the grave, and they find a card written by someone called Jason. Marjorie's son Jason. Serena has a nephew, and she has no clue how old he is but she can already feel her heart expanding and making room for him inside. She knows before she's even met him that Jason will be something good.

The only problem is that she has no way of contacting Jason, isn't even sure if she can. Waiting around a cemetery for him to appear seems odd. Besides, he is probably with his Dad, grieving. Serena succumbs to the fact that Jason will have to be another person who makes her feel lonely, another person who she can't get close to no matter how much she wants to. Robbie tells her his friend has managed to get a contact email address for Jason, and he gives it to her. She looks at the paper for a long time before thanking Robbie for his troubles. He smiles smugly. She knows he expects a reward, and she makes a note to try and make an extra effort next time she goes to his place. She'll act like he's doing more than scratching her itch. If she can meet Jason, it'll be worth it.

On an otherwise dull morning, after a nudge in the right direction from Fletch, Serena composes and sends and email to Jason Haynes. For the first time in a long while, Serena has the feeling that she might not be as lonely anymore.

To Be Continued…


	2. Chapter 2

(a/n – thank you to everyone who has been so kind and shown excitement about this AU! I did say updates would be few and far between but I certainly hope this one makes up for it! This is where we start to go a little more canon divergent…)

Chapter 2

Living with Major Bernie is something which Jason had grown used to and now loves. Major Bernie is one of the people who Jason really likes. She's interesting and strong and patient (usually). She's not like his Mum at all really, but that doesn't matter. Jason doesn't want to replace his Mum. Major Bernie's injury has impacted upon her hard and Jason tries his best to accommodate. He makes her tea and toast with raspberry jam and puts on old episodes of World's Strongest Man for them to get to grips with. Major Bernie pays for a subscription to BBC History Magazine for Jason and together they discuss any interesting articles there may be on military history. All in all, things are not too bad.

Jason was very worried when Major Bernie had her accident and ended up in hospital. Now she is home again he is trying his very hardest to make her feel good, because he understands that she is sad. Jason makes her a booklet on interesting facts he is learning at college. It is something he is really rather proud of as the college librarian (a kind man called Pete) helped Jason to photocopy pages of magazines and also source articles online via academic databases. He also allowed Jason to take extra books on his ticket than is strictly allowed because Pete knows Jason will look after them, and Jason didn't want to trace the half page pictures of tanks and engineering diagrams in the library where people might distract him. He wanted to do it at home in the peace of his bedroom.

Jason presents Major Bernie with the booklet one day and she smiles brightly. Jason goes to make her a cup of tea to enjoy while she reads. The next day, she asks Jason if he is allowed to take out the book he traced one of the pictures from again, as she would like to read it. Jason beams and when he has his lunch break at college he goes to Pete and whispers (because it is a library) the situation to him. Pete smiles and adds the book onto Jason's ticket saying he hopes Bernie gets well soon.

His Mum has been gone for over two years now, and Jason is now less sad though he still misses her. Major Bernie is getting a bit better. She's still not as good as she was when she first met him, but her left arm is working and the problem is primarily her left leg nowadays. As what would have been his Mum's birthday approaches, Jason feels himself getting sadder. He wants to mark the occasion with something because he couldn't the year before when he was living in his horrible accommodation. Major Bernie notices and talks about his Mum with him. She lets him add his Mum's favourite type of cake (Victoria sponge) to their weekly shopping order and also asks if he might like to make his Mum a birthday card. Jason says this is silly as he cannot give it to his Mum. Major Bernie agrees but says some of her army friends sometimes write cards and leave them at the graves of the loved ones they lost in the field. Jason thinks about this. He considers how he has not visited his Mum's grave in quite some time. He thinks he might be brave enough to go with Major Bernie beside him.

Jason makes a card for his Mum. He isn't very good at art and crafts but his Mum always said she liked his unique style so he sticks with it. He feels silly writing a birthday message inside so instead he writes that he misses his Mum. Major Bernie says she's going to take some flowers to Jason's Mum's grave if that's okay with him. She'd like to show her respects to the woman who raised such a fine young gentleman. Jason nods his approval.

They go to the grave and Jason places the card as Major Bernie arranges the flowers. He isn't sure what the correct social etiquette is so he reads the words on the stone slab in front of him. He feels brave and strong and at peace. Until he doesn't. When he realises, something inside him snaps and he can't see for the tears streaming down his face, his glasses misting up. He doesn't have the energy or mental capacity to wipe them. He feels Major Bernie holding him close and steadying him as she turns them towards a nearby bench. Jason realises she is struggling over the rough terrain of the graveyard and manages to hold her arm and sit them both down. He is mentally exhausted, Major Bernie is physically exhausted.

He takes great, gulping gasps and blows his nose in the tissue which Major Bernie offers to him. She asks him to tell her what the problem is and Jason points back towards the grave.

"They spelt her name wrong!" He wails. "She's written as Hayes and not Haynes when that's our name!" He hadn't realised when it was the funeral, he had been too upset to look. But now in the harsh light of time passed, it is a catastrophic error which he blames himself for. Major Bernie stares into the distance for a while as Jason rambles. "Major Bernie it's all wrong! She'll go down in history distorted with the wrong name and people might never be able to find which family she actually belongs to!" Major Bernie nods and stands. Jason stands with her.

"I'll sort it Jason, don't you worry. I need something to keep me occupied while I'm at home." Jason trusts her.

Major Bernie does manage to sort it out. She tells him that she's contacted a couple of friends she has and they'll redo the stone for a nominal fee which she is happy to pay. It should be fixed within the next three months. Jason wishes the timeframe were more precise but accepts that Major Bernie has managed to save his Mum from historical damnation. He tries to make her a curry to say thank you, but it doesn't quite go to plan because he's not a fan of spice and so doesn't add any. It ends up more like rice in an odd pasta sauce with naan bread but Major Bernie proclaims it to be delicious and asks Jason if he would like to make it again. He's pleased with the result.

Jason's other quest is to find Major Bernie a girlfriend, though he's not doing too well. He thinks one of the kind biology teachers at his college would be appropriate, but when he asks if she would like to date Major Bernie she tells him she is already in a relationship. He sees a lady at the bus stop who may be the right age but his Mum and Major Bernie have both told him not to talk to strangers and he trusts them so does not speak to the woman. He even asks Pete when he returns the book Major Bernie has now finished reading, but Pete laughs and tells him that he doesn't know any pretty and kind and clever and successful and respectful women who are looking for a girlfriend, and suggests that maybe Jason is searching for someone too perfect. Jason disagrees. Major Bernie has a tough life and deserves nothing less than a perfect girlfriend, in his opinion. Also, he has to like whoever Major Bernie dates so he is adamant that anyone who cannot pass his thorough screening will not be allowed to monopolise her attention when technically she works for him.

Jason receives an email one morning off a lady claiming to be his aunt. She works at Holby City Hospital on the Acute Admissions Unit. Jason recalls that's where Major Bernie was after her accident, though he doesn't remember any lady doctors. He scans the email address which the message has come from and concludes that it is genuinely from a hospital trust account. Also, doctors are meant to be people who don't lie because they're there to help you. Like police and fire fighters and prison officers and mountain rescuers and coast guards. Jason decides to grab his notebook and put on his suit and go and meet Serena Campbell like she is asking him to. He checks on Major Bernie, finds she is asleep and leaves her a note with a cup of tea to say that he has gone to see his Auntie Serena. It is a good job he has the day off college.

Jason manages to make his way to the hospital without any difficulties. He uses his bus pass to travel to Holby City Museum and then walks to the stop he knows Major Bernie gets the hospital shuttle bus from, and waits for that. He briefly considers getting Auntie Serena a present from the museum gift shop then realises that he has not brought enough money and also the shuttle bus is due soon so he decides against the idea. He gets mildly annoyed when the shuttle bus turns up two minutes before the timetable says it is due but pushes it aside to think of interesting questions to ask his Auntie Serena when he meets her.

Finding AAU isn't a problem. Jason's immediate thought is that the people on it are a little strange. Finally he meets Auntie Serena and asks her about her favourite sea creature and when she has lunch. He tells her he has Asperger's because Major Bernie has told him that not everyone can realise that and it might be helpful if he told people to stop them getting confused. Auntie Serena is a very busy doctor who is a lot confused and has a terrible fashion sense, Jason thinks. He pretends to be a patient so that she will speak to him. He's very proud of that plan. Eventually they manage to have a chat after Auntie Serena brings coffee and Jason informs her that he doesn't like it.

"So where do you live?" Auntie Serena asks.

"In Major Bernie's house."

"Major Bernie?"

"A friend. But she's also paid to do the boring stuff. Like a personal assistant like film stars have or a roman slave like in Gladiator. Discharged from the army."

"And does Bernie know you're here?"

"Yes. I left Major Bernie a note but I'm my own person. We can do as we please."

Auntie Serena seems very fascinated with Jason's Mum which makes him a bit sad. Then she runs away because her pager bleeps and Jason finds himself alone in the office waiting for lunch. He doesn't know what to do so he begins to turn parts of the office over in a panic because he's not sure what to do in this situation and then a very tall man comes to the office and Jason thinks he likes him. He asks him lots of questions and they talk about things for a while before having a World's Strongest Man competition in the office. This makes Jason happy. Henrick Hanssen is someone Jason would like to be friends with.

Auntie Serena takes him to the Peace Garden and Jason meets Jac the bald headed eagle. Jac is nice and thinks he's sensible. Jason tells Auntie Serena he likes Jac. Then they sit and chat and Jason decides he doesn't like Auntie Serena's lipstick so he tells her so as she's leaving.

Auntie Serena isn't by the vending machine in twenty minutes so Jason hides in a room until Fletcher the budgie comes and agrees to have a mini World's Strongest Man competition with him. Jason thinks that he may have met the strongest person he's ever known (except Major Bernie if she wasn't injured). Auntie Serena arrives and Jason has decided that enough is enough. He's fed up of being messed about so he tells her that he doesn't want to talk to her anymore.

Instead he talks to Nurse Fletcher and helps him. He tells Nurse Fletcher that he would like a girlfriend but he is told the hospital doesn't do those. Jason sighs. That means that he cannot search the hospital for a girlfriend for Major Bernie, which is a shame as there's lots of people in the hospital. At least everyone on AAU is nice. Jason thinks he may have made some friends. He's enjoying himself.

Then Major Bernie arrives.

Bernie knows she is doing better. She is completing all of her exercises at home and her physiotherapist is happy with her progression. On the whole, she feels positive. A little lonely at times, especially when Jason is at college, but mainly positive. Jason is being delightfully sweet, making her booklets and bringing her books and serving her tea. She is immensely proud of how well he is doing. When he gets upset by the misspelling on his mother's gravestone, Bernie feels his anger as her own and vows to correct the situation.

Jason is getting more and more independent. He understands that some days Bernie needs to sleep in a little longer than usual because she may be in pain or have woken up in the night due to a nightmare. He usually occupies himself with magazines or books or a trip out to Holby City Museum, always leaving her a note to tell her where he has gone and his estimated time of arrival home (which is more often than not correct give or take five minutes).

Bernie wakes and shuffles into the kitchen to find a note propped against a now cold cup of tea. 'Gone to see Serena' is all it says, and Bernie frowns. He's never mentioned a Serena before. She momentarily reconsiders and checks if she's been too preoccupied or selfish to listen to Jason talking about a new friend but she cannot remember a single situation when Jason might have mentioned a Serena. Bernie knows that some of the people at college try to take advantage of Jason's vulnerable nature. The time when he admitted to adding £40 of sweets and chocolate to their shopping order because several 'friends' had asked him to provide snacks springs to her mind. Bernie panics slightly. College isn't on today so she has no earthly idea where Jason has gone, and she's certainly in no fit state to go running around town inquiring as to if anybody may have seen him. Anything could have happened to him. While she is at home she spends an awful lot of time reading various local and national newspapers. There's always stories of young adults or children being lured to remote locations by online predators and turning up dead or high or assaulted. Jason may have a high level of intelligence for memorising facts and storing information but he has poor social skills. He will talk to just about anyone, not realising they are potentially dangerous. He will step out in front of moving vehicles without realising how close they are. Any number of things could have happened to him.

She thinks this may be the most stressed she's ever been. In the field she always had a cool head and could make calls easily. But when such a delicate young life is at stake and she is the one responsible she suddenly feels overwhelmingly guilty and anxious. Looking into his room for clues, she notices Jason's laptop on his desk and swishes her finger on the mouse pad. The screen springs to life and Bernie notices that the web browser is on the login page for Jason's email. She bites her lip in thought, as it seems likely that Jason has been communicating with the mysterious Serena through email. She knows his email address, so that box is easy. The password, on the other hand, is less so.

"Right Wolfe. Time to recall those intelligence skills from the field," she mutters to the room.

It's a good job she's been living with Jason for so long now and knows him so well, because if she was not aware of his logical thought process and love of military history she would have never worked out his password. The webpage loads and she finds the email she wants, sent earlier that day from one Serena Campbell of Holby City Hospital. Apparently Jason has an aunt, but Bernie is sceptical so checks the email address. She finds it is genuine. Bernie frowns at the screen before getting properly dressed and heading out of her bungalow. At least now she has some idea of where Jason has headed to.

The buses are running late so by the time she's reached the hospital she's a ball of rage contained inside a body too broken for this sort of thing now. Bernie follows instructions from various porters and members of staff until she arrives on the correct ward. Her first priority is Jason, and when she sees him leaning against the nurses' station she almost weeps with relief. Bernie never thought she'd be overly maternal. She truly thought that Cam and Charlotte the koi carp in the pond in her garden were the closest she was ever going to get to serious responsibility. But here she is feeling overwhelmed by relief in the knowledge that the young man she tries to look after is apparently unharmed.

Jason tries to act cocky in front of her, and she knows he's overcompensating and trying to put on an act of bravado in front of strangers. She knows that inside he's probably a little but uncomfortable and also he knows he's probably not in Bernie's good books for disappearing like he did. Bernie is greeted by a cockney male nurse who seems competent enough, but the person Bernie is really bothered about meeting is Serena Campbell. As she asks the staff point towards the door and Bernie turns to see the gorgeous brunette consultant she remembers from her brief time on AAU coming through the doors. Bernie's first thought is 'oh whoops' as she feels her stomach tighten at seeing her. Serena smiles and her eyes trail up and down Bernie's body, making Bernie feel like she's being undressed. She's not complaining. She reaches out her hand to introduce herself but is beaten to it by Serena.

"Berenice Wolfe if I am not mistaken. Pleasure to see you again." Her voice is practically a purr and Bernie cannot bring herself to let go of her hand. She seems to have lost all thought as she swears this beautifully stunning woman is flirting with her.

"I'd like to leave now Major Bernie."

Bernie's thoughts return filled with anger when Jason addresses her as he begins to stride across the ward. Clearly Serena has not made the best impression on Jason.

Bernie manages to stop Jason from running away when she sees how completely crestfallen Serena looks. Bernie knows she needs to be angry at the woman but at the same time she feels drawn to her in a way that she should really be ignoring. In the end, Bernie goes into Serena's office while Jason goes to buy himself a piece of cake from the coffee shop downstairs. He's not quite ready to speak to Serena yet but Bernie thinks he will be after he's had some comfort food. For now, she finds herself in an enclosed office with a beautiful woman, and her mind begins to run away with rather inappropriate thoughts. She shakes her head and channels the anger she felt earlier, the protectiveness she has over Jason her number one driving force. She's visibly shaking and gritting her teeth to stop herself from getting violent. Serena looks at her a little more awkwardly now.

"I didn't realise you were Major Bernie," is the first thing Serena says. "How's the leg?"

"Better than it was but still recovering. But to the point: how the hell did you get Jason's email address?" Bernie's tone is commanding and powerful. It is every inch the army major she has spent her life becoming.

"Robbie my, erm, boyfriend. He's in the police. He got it for me." Serena looks sheepish. Bernie knows that the next rational step would be to report Robbie, but Serena has just essentially verbally slapped her in the face by telling her that she's in a relationship despite all the flirting, so Bernie can't control her anger. She slams her right hand against the desk.

"He's a crook! Jason is a vulnerable young adult with Asperger's, a deceased mother and an absent father who is legally banned from ever having anything to do with him. I am his legal guardian and therefore I am fully aware that it is stipulated in all legal documents surrounding his situation that he is protected as a vulnerable adult by myself and the authorities. He is to inherit what little his mother left him when he is in a stable job and feels comfortable enough to deal with it. His email address is one which he uses to contact the care supervisors and other professional services. The fact that anyone managed to get hold of it indicates a serious breaching of legal, ethical and moral boundaries. I would be well within my rights going to the relevant bodies and having this case hauled before the courts to showcase how grossly incompetent and untrustworthy certain professionals are. If the care company find out about this I could be investigated and have Jason taken out of my care while the legal matters occur. He would be placed back into that awful place he was living before he came to live with me. Do you realise this? Do you realise what stress and turmoil this could put a whole number of people under, most importantly Jason himself? He's a vulnerable young man who has essentially had his private data hacked! Do you see the problem here?"

Bernie stops her rant and takes a few deep breaths. Throughout the exchange Serena's face has shown several emotions ranging from defiance to sadness. Right now her face is the picture of rage.

"That man is dead to me."

Bernie soon realises that Serena is as feisty as they get and Bernie loves it. She calls her boyfriend and in clipped tones asks him to come to meet her in her office at the hospital as soon as he can. She turns and tells Bernie that her presence will also be valued. Bernie nods her assent, even though she really does not wish to meet the man who has somehow managed to score the finest woman in Holby.

Jason returns and enters the office calmly, choosing to pull a chair closer to Bernie. She stands and lets him have the swivel chair, knowing how the ability to turn back and forth rhythmically calms him when he's stressed. Serena looks towards Jason and Bernie can see the complete fondness she has in her eyes for him. Serena Campbell is, by all accounts, a caring woman. Bernie can feel her heart flutter and her stomach flip at the thought of being on the receiving end of such a precious look from such a wonderful woman. Bernie nudges Jason gently and he looks at Serena steadily. Bernie is proud of him.

Serena apologises to Jason for being so apologetic and not factoring his needs in. Bernie more or less sits and observes as a third party. Jason and Serena are well on their way to forming a bond with one another, and Bernie finds she isn't jealous that Jason has found a family member because he still turns and talks to her. She doesn't think Jason is going to discard her for his new Auntie Serena. Besides, Bernie thinks, how could she be jealous? If anything she's thrilled that Jason has discovered an aunt who is so utterly sexy and makes Bernie feel like her life has an extra bit of purpose in it?

A large man with poor facial hair knocks on the office door and Serena gestures for him to come in. Jason looks up and inquires as to who he is. Serena looks at Jason and smiles indulgently.

"This, Jason, is Robbie." Bernie scrutinises the man carefully. She has no idea what he has that Serena finds so appealing. She knows she's biased but she can think of at least eighteen better features about herself than this man. But then she gently reminds herself that if Serena is straight it doesn't matter what Bernie has, for she will never be a consideration.

Jason fires questions at Robbie who looks increasingly irritated. Bernie senses this and decides that she doesn't want him interacting with Jason if she can help it, he's a negative influence. As luck would have it another figure looms into the doorway and Jason's face splits into a beaming smile.

"Mr Hanssen!" He turns to Bernie. "Major Bernie this is my new Swedish friend Mr Hanssen! We did World's Strongest Man together. Can I please go and spend some time with him?" Bernie asks if this would be okay and the man informs her that he actually came looking for Jason. Jason bounces in delight at this announcement. Bernie agrees and tells Jason to meet her in the office again when he's finished. That leaves Bernie, Serena and Robbie in the office.

The first to break the silence is Robbie.

"Did Willy Wonka stretch another child again?" He smirks as he says it and looks towards Serena expecting a laugh. Instead she glares at him.

"That was my nephew." Her voice is icy sharp. Robbie changes tactics.

"Oh I'm so pleased. That email address I got you worked then?" The way he sounds so smug and sure of himself makes Bernie's blood boil.

"It did, though Major Bernie here wants to have a chat with you about that." Robbie turns to her and Bernie can tell he's eyeing her up and trying to work out where he stands. She keeps her face a blank mask and chooses to stare him down. If she can face potential enemy insurgents, she can face this man. He breaks first.

"What's the problem?"

Bernie tells him in great detail what the problem is. She tells him that she thinks he's a disgrace to his profession. She tells him that he's lucky Jason likes Serena so a legal battle is unlikely to be fought. She tells him that should he ever do anything to disrupt the way of life anyone ever has again she will not hesitate to have him taken down. She tells him that as an army official she has contacts that would not hesitate to keep tabs on someone she identified as a potential threat. He shrinks into his body the turns to Serena.

"Well at least over time we can get to know Jason, can't we sweetheart?" Serena raises an eyebrow so beautifully Bernie thinks it should be an art form.

"You will not be getting to know my nephew Robbie. Or me, for that matter. I do not wish to be in a relationship with a man who has questionable friends and would only put up with Jason to get me into bed. See you around."

The man walks away looking a broken man. Bernie almost feels sorry for him.

As soon as Jason appears and starts asking her about sea creatures Serena realises that her nephew is a very special individual indeed. She wants to know everything about his Mum (her half-sister!) and how he has lived his life so far. She underestimates just how needy Jason is as a result of his Asperger's Syndrome. Seemingly small things are huge disasters to him, and Serena has no idea how to deal with it.

He mentions that he lives with a Major Bernie and Serena panics for a moment. She thinks he might be part of some military academy or other such organisation which Jason might not be comfortable with. But he seems happy and has been allowed to visit her so she assumes that Major Bernie is a family friend, an elderly neighbour perhaps who Jason is familiar with. A man who spent years serving for his country and is now spending his retirement looking after Jason.

When she comes through the doors onto AAU and sees Berenice Wolfe she almost faints with delight. The woman who has plagued her thoughts for so long is there in person. This is the woman Serena has been silently imagining she is dating when Robbie fails to meet her expectations, though she then always feels bad and showers extra attention on the policeman to erase her own guilty conscience. But Robbie or no Robbie, Serena is not going to pass an opportunity to flirt with such a gorgeous woman. Finding out that Berenice Wolfe is actually Jason's Major Bernie is certainly a surprise.

Jason is upset and Berenice (Bernie) is angry and Serena suddenly decides that Robbie isn't someone she should just settle for. Yes, he may have helped her to discover her nephew but he's also not someone she wants to spend the rest of her life with. When he's in the same room as a certain soldier for Serena the choice is clear. One of them she can imagine herself retiring with. The other the thought of retirement together seems like sentencing herself to eternal boredom. So she rids herself of Robbie and finds she doesn't feel especially guilty about it.

Serena is left in the room with Bernie, and for a moment their eyes meet and the air crackles with electricity like it did when Bernie was admitted onto the ward. Serena wets her lips and doesn't miss Bernie's eyes flick downwards to them as the other woman gulps. Serena shifts closer to where Bernie is and the woman herself stands slowly and makes her way towards Serena. Serena can hear her heart hammering in her ears but find she doesn't care a single bit. She's ready for this and she is going to take the opportunity to really impress Major Berenice Wolfe. She's close, so close. Serena can imagine wrapping her arms around the military woman's neck and pressing her against the desk. She inhales and the door to the office crashes open. The tension in the room disappears almost as quickly as air gets released from a balloon. A very excited Jason bounds through and addresses them both, with Henrik Hanssen not too far behind.

It turns out that Hanssen had taken Jason to the roof to look out at all of the surrounding city. Jason had been able to see for miles and miles, including the railway and the shopping centre but most importantly Holby City Museum. Bernie smiles at that and thanks Hanssen for being so generous with his time. Jason declares that Mr Hanssen is now one of his friends and that he's going to come back and see him at the hospital when Mr Hanssen isn't busy. Serena thinks she sees Hanssen's lips quirk upwards in a hint of a smile.

Jason is tired after a long and emotionally exhausting day, so Bernie agrees to take him home. She lets Serena walk down the corridor with him first to fully clear the air of any misconceptions they may have had. When Jason agrees to start again with her Serena feels her heart swell with joy. They agree to be partners – leader and deputy. Jason offers his hand to shake and Serena does so happily. Bernie speaks from behind them.

"Do you think Serena could have a hug, Jason?" Jason nods and pulls Serena into his arms. Serena closes her eyes to treasure this moment as a precious one. She knows that Jason is going to be a new delight in her life. When he lets go, Serena can't help herself. She turns to Bernie and opens her arms in offering. Bernie looks a little shocked but limps forward to allow herself to be wrapped in Serena's embrace. Both of them sigh simultaneously and Serena thinks that she could probably stay in this moment forever and ever and never get bored. Jason asks Major Bernie if they can leave now and the soldier pulls back almost reluctantly. As they walk outside, Bernie warns Serena that if she wants to get to know Jason she needs to make sure she is willing to understand him. Serena nods her assent. Bernie smiles softly and presses a hospital leaflet into her palm, telling her to use it as an insurance policy if need be. Written along the top edge is a phone number. Serena clutches it to her tightly.

Serena's life continues for a while and is so incredibly busy that she doesn't get a chance to contact Jason again. She does manage to call Ellie one evening though to inform her that she's split with Robbie, and also to tell her about her new cousin. Elinor seems a little shocked but on the whole she seems to take it well, thrilled that Serena has dumped the police officer who Elinor never liked anyway. Serena doesn't realise she is talking about Bernie so much until Elinor asks if she's planning on asking her to dinner soon. Serena chokes on her wine, wondering just when she got so transparent to her daughter down the phone. Elinor just tells her that this Bernie has clearly made an impression on her. Serena is glad that Elinor is accepting of the fact that she occasionally dates women, because she doesn't think she would be able to cope if her daughter was not a progressive and liberal young woman.

She texts Bernie's number after she hangs up, just a quick 'Hi, it's Serena. Thought you might like my number too x' which she hopes is enough. A week later she gets a Skype notification from Jason's account, and she accepts it readily. She only tends to use Skype for video conferencing but when Jason dials her that evening she clicks accept immediately and spends a good while talking to him about various things, including World's Strongest Man (though Serena hasn't got the faintest clue who all of the people he is talking about are). Around 45 minutes into the conversation Bernie appears next to Jason and smiles at her through the screen, waving hello. Serena can't help but notice that Bernie seems to be moving quite stiffly, and wonders if she has had a physiotherapy appointment that day. The three of them talk some more and Serena loves the idea of them being a mismatched family unit, imagines she is away at a medical conference seeing how her family are back home. Jason announces at three minutes to nine that they have to go because there's a new Mary Beard documentary on that he and Bernie wish to watch. Serena bids them adieu then closes her laptop. Then finds herself turning on the television to watch a historical documentary that five minutes ago she had absolutely no idea was even on.

Jason comes to visit her at the hospital (prearranged and cleared with Hanssen) and Serena finds herself becoming increasingly attached to him. He's intelligent and talks to her about his college courses. She now knows more about world war two than she ever thought she would. She also finds herself recording the Mary Beard documentaries as they are shown so that she can watch them and chat with him about them. It feels nice to have something common that the young man is clearly so passionate about.

Jason begins to trust her and their relationship progresses to something a lot more stable than it originally was. Build on rocks rather than sand nowadays. She feels jubilant and it must show because her colleagues frequently ask her about her nephew and she delights in telling them how he is developing. How they're both developing. They all seem thrilled for her, her little extended family on AAU. Life is going well for her.

Jason invites her to Holby City Museum with Major Bernie and himself. Serena feels guilty that she's on shift so forwards him a copy of her schedule and offers to go on any of the days when she is off because she doesn't want to miss out on this. From the short time she has known him Serena has discovered that Holby City Museum is, in Jason's eyes, the highlight of Holby City. They arrange to meet up and Serena takes extra care with her appearance – fluffing her hair and adding a little extra eyeliner and wearing a different lipstick to the one Jason criticised the first time they met.

They meander round the museum together, Jason excitedly explaining everything to her. Serena realises that Bernie struggles up and down the steps, but Jason happily holds onto her arm and guides her gently around the building. Serena can't remember a time she's enjoyed herself this much. What with her mother's passing and Elinor being so far away and the whole mess with Robbie, Serena realises that Jason has brought some sunshine into her life.

As they reach the section on Ancient Egypt, one of the curators smiles at Jason and tells him that they've just taken delivery of a new artefact on loan from the London Imperial War Museum. Asks if he would like to see it before it goes on display. Jason practically vibrates with excitement and turns to look at Bernie who tells Jason to enjoy himself. Tells him that she and Serena will stay in the museum. Jason gleefully accompanies the curator (called Patrick) through the staff only doors. Bernie proudly explains that Jason knows all of the staff at the museum by name, and occasionally helps out at volunteer evenings. Serena grins.

The time she and Bernie spend in the museum while Jason is gone is less about looking at the exhibits in great detail and more about basking in comfortable silence. Serena takes Bernie's arm as they approach a set of particularly steep steps. When they reach the top, they don't part. Serena feels like everything in her life has fallen into place. Never before has anything felt so right. She could happily walk arm in arm with Bernie for the rest of her life.

Jason eventually finds them in the museum café, sharing a piece of chocolate fudge cake and sipping at coffees. Serena doesn't realise Jason has returned at first, for she is too lost in the depths of Bernie's eyes as they wordlessly communicate with one another over their snack. It isn't until Jason starts gushing about the new artefact that he has just seen that she and Bernie snap out of their bubble and give Jason their full attention once more.

As they leave Holby City Museum to go their separate ways, Serena accepts a hug off Jason then turns to Bernie. They look at each other for a moment then hug too, though lips brush cheeks as they part. Bernie looks down at her shoes then back up at Serena, who thinks she's never met a more adorable woman. They share a small, secretive smile and then turn their separate ways. As she arrives home that day, Serena wonders how she became lucky enough to get not one but two very special people appear in her life.


	3. Chapter 3

(a/n – hey look I'm back with another update how great is that?! Berena Appreciation Week gave me my muse back! I've played around with the canon timeline now because we are heading to the majorly canon divergent part of this AU.)

Chapter 3

Jason Haynes is a sensible young man who attends college to study general science and history. He enjoys those subjects. He lives with Major Bernie, who is strong and interesting and very caring even though she's a veteran. Major Bernie needs a girlfriend to make her even happier and to look after her when Jason isn't around. Jason Haynes also has an Auntie Serena, who is a vascular surgeon on the Acute Admissions Unit at Holby City Hospital. She's also the Deputy CEO and, as far as Jason can tell, she is not in a relationship. Jason likes Major Bernie and he likes Auntie Serena. He thinks Major Bernie and Auntie Serena might grow to like one another, in time. He sets about devising a cunning plan to help them to fall in love because then Jason will make Major Bernie happy and he will see his Auntie Serena more often. He thinks it is a very clever idea.

Jason finds he doesn't have much time to put his plan into action because he spends a lot of time at college learning interesting things and talking to Pete the librarian, who might be one of Jason's friends. Major Bernie is slowly recovering and getting more and more mobile around the house, which Jason thinks is good. He sometimes goes to see Auntie Serena at the hospital if she isn't busy, because then he can also go and see Mr Hanssen, who is very kind and Swedish and takes him up to the roof a lot so Jason can look out over Holby City. He mostly talks to Auntie Serena on Skype when she is off shift, and once they meet up at Holby City Museum so Jason can show her the new British Military In World War Two exhibit. Auntie Serena enjoys it very much.

One day Jason is at Holby City Museum alone while Major Bernie is at a physical therapy appointment and he is off college for the Easter holidays. Jennifer the Head Curator of the museum asks Jason if he would like to do a talk at an evening event which they have coming up. It is to celebrate their various exhibits and she feels that Jason has enough knowledge to deliver an inspiring talk about the items they have in their British Military In World War Two exhibit. Jason beams and tells her he would love to do it. She gives him detailed time plans and also two tickets for guests he may wish to bring. Jason goes home smiling that day and gives one to Major Bernie, before announcing that he is going to personally deliver the other to Auntie Serena the very next day.

Jason sits in Auntie Serena's office after being told she is in theatre. He momentarily considers why it is called a theatre when that is a place where people sing and dance and perform on a stage. He thinks he will ask Auntie Serena about that when he sees her.

Auntie Serena enters the office looking tired and when Jason asks her she jumps a little bit and says she didn't realise he was there. He says he is quite big so maybe she should get glasses like he has. She doesn't know the answer to his question, which is a shame. Jason then fulfils the main aim of his mission. He produces the ticket and proudly tells her that he has been asked to do a talk and he wants her to be one of his guests because she is his Auntie Serena and she liked it when he talked to her about military history before. She looks a little tearful and Jason asks her why she is sad. She tells him she is not sad but pleased and Jason wonders why she is crying. She tells him that wild horses wouldn't keep her away from his talk, and Jason is pleased though says there are not any wild horses in Holby City, as far as he knows, so she should be okay. Auntie Serena laughs and walks him down to the doors to the hospital, promising to see him at his talk.

Jason is a little bit nervous about his talk. He asks Auntie Serena how she delivers talks in board meetings and she says that she uses little notecards to write down the important details that she doesn't want to forget. Jason nods thoughtfully and asks Major Bernie to add notecards to their weekly shop, then panics that the order doesn't arrive for another four days so instead he asks Major Bernie if she will come with him to the big stationery shop in the shopping centre to find some before she has her weekly hospital appointment. He gets nervous going in shops he isn't familiar with trying to find products he isn't sure about. She agrees and helps him to select a colour coded packet before dropping him at Holby City Museum, where he spends the afternoon looking at each artefact in the exhibit, grouping them in his head and then writing information about each on a notecard of the specific colour to the group he has assigned it. When he meets Major Bernie afterwards, he is surer of his speech.

Jason believes that practicing is the only way he will be good at his speech on the day, and so he spends hours upon hours delivering his talk to himself in his bedroom and then, when he feels more confident, to Major Bernie while she drinks a cup of tea in the morning or afternoon or evening. He even delivers a practice talk to Auntie Serena over Skype when they have their scheduled call of the week. Both Major Bernie and Auntie Serena say that his talk is very informative and they like it very much. He trusts their opinion.

He arrives very early to the museum on the day of his talk. Jennifer is there and explains that the talks are a series, each delivered by a different person on every night of the week. His is the first and he is welcome to attend the others on the rest of the nights if he would like to. Jason would like to. He looks at the chairs set out in the exhibition room, and an idea forms in his head which makes him smile. He has heard from people at his college that back rows of cinemas are conducive to romantic actions (though he cannot understand why that is exactly) and so requests two pieces of paper from Jennifer. He writes Major Bernie's name on one piece and Auntie Serena's on the other. He then places them on two seats on the back row of seats, on the edge (because he knows Major Bernie will bring her cane and also needs space to manoeuvre herself in and out of the seat with her still stiff left leg). He hopes that the romantic back row theory extends to museums too, because he really would like Major Bernie and Auntie Serena to be in a relationship. They're his two most favourite people in the world (apart from his Mum).

Major Bernie arrives in plenty of time and Jason points to the seat he has saved for her. She smiles and offers him a little salute across the room which makes him feel a bit braver about delivering the talk. Other people start to arrive and the seats fill up. Auntie Serena arrives towards the end looking a little bit flustered. Jason knows that she has been in work all day and only finished half an hour ago because he has now memorised her approximate schedule, though he understands that sometimes things can alter due to unexpected emergency surgeries. Auntie Serena notices Major Bernie and the free seat next to her, and Major Bernie goes to move but Auntie Serena waves her away and instead squeezes herself past Major Bernie in order to sit down. For some reason, they both blush at this and Jason can only hope that they will realise that they would be a good couple during his talk.

Jennifer steps forwards and thanks everyone for coming, and explains the fire regulations and introduced Jason as their speaker. She calls him Mr Jason Haynes and that makes him feel very important. He puffs his chest out with pride and thinks that his Mum would have been very pleased with him for being allowed to deliver a talk. He starts by giving a general summary of British involvement in World War Two and then focuses on each of the artefacts which are in the exhibit, specifically addressing their importance and use by group and classification. He looks towards Major Bernie and Auntie Serena sometimes, and they both appear to be happy. They are smiling at him and he smiles back and continues to deliver his talk. At the end he finishes by telling people they can ask him any questions they may still have because Major Bernie told him that would be a good thing to include. There's silence and nothing happens and Jason begins to panic that he wasn't good enough or he got the date of a battle wrong or his voice wasn't very clear and then everyone is clapping and some people are standing up, including Auntie Serena and Major Bernie who struggles slightly and has to lean onto Auntie Serena for support while she tries to clap Jason and balance. It's all very overwhelming as some people start whistling and the sounds echo in the room and Jason puts his hands over his ears and waits until they stop because he can't think over the sound.

He thinks Jennifer must tell everyone to sit down again because when he removes his hands all is quiet and Jennifer is thanking him and saying what an excellent job he has done. Jason beams and Jennifer announces that everyone is allowed to mingle and socialise over complementary drinks and snacks. Major Bernie and Auntie Serena come to congratulate him and bring him a glass of orange juice and some crackers. They stay by his side as strangers who listened to the talk come and compliment Jason and tell him how well he did. One person in particular tells Major Bernie and Auntie Serena that they must be very proud of him and says that they make a lovely family. Jason nods and says he agrees, while Major Bernie suddenly coughs and Auntie Serena laughs in a strange manner all high and tinkling. Jason wonders why that can be. He hopes falling in love doesn't make people do strange things, that isn't what he wants at all.

Jason wishes to leave early because he doesn't like socialising with strangers. He asks if Auntie Serena can come back to his and Major Bernie's house for a while to watch the latest Mary Beard documentary together. Major Bernie says that's fine with her and Auntie Serena says there's nothing she would love more. Jason nearly says that he hopes that one day she will love Major Bernie a lot more but he doesn't say anything because that would give away his secret plan and he doesn't want to do that just yet.

Auntie Serena drives them back in her car (Jason agrees to sit in the back because Major Bernie needs the space at the front to rest her leg) and Jason makes them all tea and they sit down to watch it together. Jason takes his usual armchair and Major Bernie gently eases herself onto the sofa and props her left leg up on the little stand she has nearby for that exact purpose. Auntie Serena sits next to Major Bernie on the other seat of the sofa and sips her tea as they watch the programme. By the end of the programme Auntie Serena has inched a little bit closer to Major Bernie so Jason thinks that progress is being made. She says goodbye to them both and leaves after the programme. Jason tells Major Bernie that he has had a very good day and she says she has too. He notes that she is smiling more than she usually does and adds that to his list of evidence as to why Major Bernie and Auntie Serena would be a very good couple indeed.

He now needs to find another opportunity to make them fall in love a bit more.

Bernie is attracted to Serena Campbell, the aunt of the boy she is the legal guardian of. She knows that's a potential problem but at the same time she can't find it in herself to care. It's been such a long time since she was drawn to a beautiful woman who also flirts back with her and she decides to enjoy whatever it is that she has going on with Serena for however long it may last. She hopes it lasts a long time.

Jason gets asked to deliver a talk at Holby City Museum and Bernie cannot help but feel proud. She listens to his speech again and again and again and reassures him that he is excellent and the best he can be. On the night she shows up and sits on the seat he has saved which is next to one for Serena. Bernie looks up at Jason stood at the front of the room and offers him a little salute of comfort. She desperately wants him to do as well as she knows he can. Serena eventually arrives and clambers over her and Bernie feels flustered by the close proximity of Serena's breasts to her face. Serena apologises quietly and they spend the talk fixated on Jason, but when everyone gives him a standing ovation at the end Bernie leans onto Serena for support without thinking, and is mildly surprised when the other woman remains close, even wrapping her arm around her waist to help her to sit again afterwards. They stand with Jason and a man tells them that they make a wonderful family. Bernie almost jokes on her own tongue. Jason doesn't seem to realise what the man means but she and Serena do and they share a look which Bernie has to tear her gaze away from lest she do something inappropriate to Serena in public. Serena drives them home and they watch a documentary and after Serena leaves Bernie finds herself with a sense of longing in her chest, wishing that the domesticity of the evening could be a daily thing for the three of them.

Sometimes Serena texts Bernie. Usually the texts are to ask how Jason is or to say that he made it to the hospital safely to meet her. Occasionally though, the texts are more personal and Bernie delights in them. A simple 'hope your leg is okay today' can make Bernie's day infinitely better. She always agonises over a reply, not sure what to say so that she doesn't appear too keen but also not to uncaring. Bernie doesn't want to mess things up with Serena Campbell.

Bernie starts meeting up with Serena when she has her scheduled hospital appointments. She will try and get there early and sit in the coffee shop with an extra latte and a pain au chocolat, waiting for the other woman. She tells herself that originally it is just so that she can update Jason's aunt as to how he is doing in a way that is easier than over the phone. But as their weekly meetings become more and more informal as they chat and joke about all kinds of things, Bernie cannot help but admit to herself that her little meetings with Serena are purely about spending time in the company of the other woman.

Bernie finds that she can talk to Serena about surgery easily. Serena is excited by Bernie's experiences in the field (she even goes as far as to tell Bernie that she's the best in her field with a stellar reputation, and Bernie feels herself flushing crimson). Bernie, for her part, loves hearing Serena talk about the bureaucracy and workings of the NHS. But then she thinks she would love hearing anything so long as it came from the lips of Serena Campbell. Bernie always leaves at the last possible moment to head to her appointment, and sometimes Serena will walk her to the right room, leaving her with a wink and flirtatious comment that makes Bernie's stomach flip. Occasionally Serena will be called into surgery and miss their little meetings, but she always sends Bernie an apologetic text to tell her. Bernie thinks that maybe Serena likes seeing Bernie as much as Bernie likes seeing Serena.

Jason finishes his two year college course and Bernie marvels at how time has flown. Jason is now an integral part of her life and Bernie feels guilty remembering the time when she was adamant that she would never become a carer. She's now accepted that she will likely never go back into the military (she thinks the counselling sessions may have helped with that gradual acknowledgement) and she's actually okay with the fact. Instead she has a wonderful young man to look after and he has a magnificent auntie who both dotes on Jason and flirts with Bernie. Her life hasn't turned out too badly, she thinks.

Jason's college put on a small graduation ceremony and Jason excitedly invites both Bernie and Serena. Bernie sits next to Serena as Jason is awarded the subject prize for history and when Serena sniffles slightly Bernie offers her a tissue and puts her arm around Serena's shoulders. When Serena leans into her and whispers how proud she is of her nephew Bernie can only nod and blink away the moisture gathering in her own eyes. Once the official ceremony is over, Jason bounds over to them with a man who Jason introduces as Pete. Bernie recognises the name as that of the college librarian, and thanks the man for being so kind with Jason while she was unable to move very well. The man says it is a pleasure to meet her and when Jason introduces his Auntie Serena the man pats Jason's shoulder and says he's glad he got someone who fit all the criteria which Jason shushes him for. Bernie just lets it be and assumes that Jason will tell her what it all means should he wish to.

After Jason's graduation Serena drives them home for a pizza night which Jason has specifically requested. They pick up the takeaway on the way because Jason doesn't like the lack of control in a delivery person situation and when they get into the living room they open the boxes and spend the time chatting and laughing together. Bernie's heart aches at how right it all feels, the three of them a little family together. Serena momentarily excuses herself to go to the toilet and Bernie discovers that she's not as good as she thought at hiding things from the perceptive Jason. He looks at her steadily and addresses her.

"Major Bernie, would you be averse to being in a relationship with Auntie Serena?" She blushes and swallows her ham and pineapple pizza.

"Would you mind if I did Jason?"

"Not at all. She fits all my criteria for a good girlfriend." Ah. That explains the conversation with Pete earlier.

"She's brilliant, Jason." He nods and their conversation is terminated when Serena re-enters the room. Both Bernie and Jason steadfastly focus on their pizza until conversation resumes once more.

At one point later in the evening Jason announces that he needs to go up to his bedroom to find a book and tells them that he will leave them for a while and will also knock before re-entering. Serena raises an eyebrow at his behaviour and Bernie smiles slightly to herself.

"What's he doing?" Serena asks, gesturing towards the now closed door. Bernie takes a deep breath and looks out at Serena from under her fringe. Jason has given her the moment, it's now or never.

"I believe he's playing cupid," is her response.

"And how's that working for him?" Serena asks, her voice a touch nervous.

"Not very well if you're going to be leaving soon." Bernie bites her lip a little bit in a way she thinks Serena likes.

"Well I won't," Serena's eyes sparkle. "If you give me a reason to stay." She leans in slightly and Bernie takes a nervous breath before doing the thing she's been wanting to do for far too long.

"Will this do?" And finally, finally Bernie closes the gap between her lips and Serena Campbell's.

Kissing Serena is everything Bernie imagined it might be and more. It is every romance novel cliché with the added taste of cheese and olives. Bernie cannot help but touch Serena, who is equally as invested in running her hands through Bernie's hair, cradling the back of her neck as they kiss and kiss and kiss. Bernie flicks her tongue against Serena's lips and access is granted, leading to even deeper kisses that make Bernie moan in satisfaction. Serena has somehow ended up on Bernie's lap, more or less, and Bernie finds herself very, very glad that her left leg is now stronger than it was again so that it doesn't go numb during the moment. Bernie finds that having a lap full of Serena Campbell is rather a good situation to find yourself in.

They're interrupted by Jason knocking on the door to the lounge and they part, Serena sitting herself back next to Bernie on the sofa, but much much closer than she was. Bernie wraps an arm around her shoulders and blushes when Serena places a hand high upon her thigh. Bernie calls for Jason to enter and he comes in looking rather smugly at their flushed cheeks and mussed hair.

"Do you kiss girls now Auntie Serena? Like Major Bernie?"

"Yes Jason, I do." Serena laughs. Jason nods, satisfied. He looks at Bernie.

"So now you and Auntie Serena are girlfriends?"

"We are Jason," Bernie quickly looks to Serena to confirm she isn't being presumptuous. Serena's beaming smile makes Bernie's heart flutter.

"Good. You don't move very quickly do you? I knew you needed my assistance." Jason's forthright manner of informing them of their own shortcomings makes both Bernie and Serena laugh. Bernie thinks of the months upon months of stolen glances over coffee and shared affection for the young man before them. She thinks that Jason has somehow once again managed to prove himself to be one of the best things ever to enter her life.

They finish their pizza and Bernie finds herself getting a little bit anxious. She can recall offering Serena an invitation to spend the night but doesn't want to seem presumptuous or seedy in her advances. As much as she wants to fall asleep next to Serena, she understands that the other woman might need time and space to work out exactly what she wants from a relationship with a battered old ex-army medic.

Jason announces that he is going to bed at 10pm, and that leaves the two of them alone. Bernie shuffles to the kitchen with the leftover takeaway boxes and stalls for time, unsure how to face the woman she is so attracted to. When she returns to the lounge Serena is sat waiting for her, biting her lip in a way Bernie finds simultaneously arousing and endearing. Serena gestures for Bernie to sit next to her and places her head on the soldier's shoulder. Serena offers her hand palm upwards on Bernie's lap. Bernie thinks Serena is being brave enough for the both of them and twines their fingers together, holding on for reassurance.

"Bernie, if you don't want me to stay I won't," Serena seems to be able to read Bernie's thoughts.

"I do. Want you to stay, that is. Just… I'm not sure I could… We could… Tonight?" Bernie looks away, embarrassed for not being able to talk about sex like a grownup. Serena just nuzzles her face into Bernie's neck and squeezes her hand.

"We don't have to rush into all that just yet Bernie. I'm happy just to be close to you."

Bernie thinks that she's not done nearly enough in her lifetime to deserve Serena Campbell and all of the kindness which she has to offer for battered old veterans like Berenice Griselda Wolfe.

Serena Campbell is in a relationship with Bernie Wolfe and everything in her life is just that bit more positive. She has a wonderful nephew who continues to surprise her with his endless charm and unique skills and specific knowledge. On the whole, Serena thinks her life is going pretty well.

Nearly every week she meets up with Bernie in Pulses to have coffee and split a pastry before Bernie has her scheduled appointments. They're like regular little dates that they share, and now that they are officially in a relationship they end with a chaste kiss shared in a corner of a hospital corridor just before Bernie goes one way and Serena goes another. The rest of the time that they share together tends to be with Jason and Serena loves that just as much because she's getting to spend precious time with the nephew she's spent far too long not knowing about. Jason seems pleased about the fact that she has chosen Major Bernie to date because, as he keeps pointing out to them, they are well suited and are both nice to him.

Elinor comes home from university for part of her break and Serena tells her all about Bernie and Jason, practically gushes with joy at the mere thought of them. Elinor seems a little shocked at just how full on Serena is about them but politely agrees to meet them. Serena calls Jason and Bernie on Skype and asks if they would like to meet Elinor within the next few days before her daughter heads to see her father. They agree, and so Serena finds herself hosting a family dinner of sorts a few days later. She pre-checks the menu with Jason to ensure that he is comfortable with it and agrees a time for her to pick up Bernie and Jason. Bernie insists that they can take a taxi or the bus but Serena wants to pick them up, wants a little bit of time just with them before they meet her daughter.

The dinner goes well, Serena thinks. Elinor is civil with Jason and Bernie which is more than Serena could have hoped for. Bernie seems genuinely interested in Elinor's degree choice and her hobbies, even indulges her by answering questions she has about military life. The only awkward moment is when Elinor excitedly asks for Bernie's views on the Chilcot report and the army medic tenses, shutting in on herself slightly. Serena thinks that the politics of war isn't something Bernie likes to talk about or be engaged in discussion about. She strokes Bernie's thigh and squeezes her hand, even leans over to kiss Bernie's cheek as a gesture of comfort which seems to be well appreciated, as Bernie is soon back to her normal self, and Jason is instead talking to Elinor about military history, which Serena thinks her daughter is not all that interested in but is putting on a good show of being.

Serena is mightily surprised when Jason asks if he can stay the night. Bernie seems equally as poleaxed by his announcement because this is a huge deviation from his normal routine. Jason explains that he thinks it might be pleasant to stay over with his aunt and cousin, and also he thinks that Major Bernie might like to spend the night with Auntie Serena too. Bernie turns beetroot when he says that, and Elinor hides a snicker behind her hand. Serena just tells Jason that he is more than welcome to the upstairs guest room which is already made up for visitors. He inspects it and admits it is agreeable to him. Then he produces a set of pyjamas and a bag of toiletries from his backpack and Serena realises that Jason had planned all along for this, so that she and Bernie could spend the night together. She reminds herself that Jason is not as insensitive to other people as she first thought.

Elinor goes to bed soon after and Bernie looks at Serena from under her fringe, a smouldering gaze that makes Serena's knees turn to jelly. She sits next to Bernie on her sofa and strokes her cheek with her thumb.

"No pressure, Bernie. We can just sleep."

"Would that be okay?" Bernie is still nervous about sex, and Serena knows it stems from the insecurities she has about her leg, which is now only slightly weaker than it should be. Serena brushes her lips against Bernie's.

"More than okay. In fact, I'd prefer it. When things do happen between us I have no intention of being quiet so it would be best if there are not younger ears so close by." Serena smirks and Bernie's eyes darken before she leans across to kiss Serena, hot and wet and with the promise of so much more when the time is right.

They leave the sitting room and Bernie eyes the stairs warily. Serena thinks it is likely because Bernie lives in a bungalow and uses lifts if possible when at the hospital. Just like at Holby City Museum, Serena lets Bernie grip the bannister with one hand and offers her arm for the soldier to take. Together they slowly make their way upstairs and to Serena's bedroom.

"One day," Bernie mutters. "One day, Serena Campbell, I will be fit enough to carry you up these stairs." Serena's mind whirrs at the intent behind the words and she grazes her teeth over the shell of Bernie's ear.

"Easy tiger."

They fall asleep in just their underwear, Bernie flat on her back to minimise pain and Serena cuddled into her side, head pillowed on Bernie's chest. Bernie wraps her arms around Serena, who likes being held by her army medic.

In the morning, they share a lazy kiss and Serena wishes that this could be how every day started. Bernie is less guarded when she's fresh from sleep, and she's all the more beautiful because of it. Serena lends Bernie a hoodie to go with her jeans from the day before and they gently make their way down stairs one step at a time. Serena observes that Bernie's leg is not that weak anymore, she's just getting used to the sensation of walking up and down stairs again. They share toast as they listen to the news on the radio, until Jason emerges asking for porridge and Elinor grabs a cereal bar before she dashes off to see Edward and Liberty. She kisses Serena goodbye and tells her that Bernie is a lovely choice in partner, which Serena thinks may be the best blessing her daughter has ever given any of her partners.

Jason heads off soon after, telling them that he has agreed to help his friends at Holby City Museum to relabel some of the artefacts which they have on display. Serena offers to drive him but he declines, saying that he prefers to ground himself on the bus before he attends. He says he has already planned the bus route because he had anticipated staying the night. Serena shares a look with Bernie as they wave him goodbye.

Serena spends her morning off carefully worshipping Bernie Wolfe's body, and having that awe bestowed on her in equal measure. Bernie's body is littered in scars and Serena takes her time cataloguing every single one of them, storing which are more sensitive than others. Serena briefly wonders why she has a sudden fascination with such marks, she sees scars on patients every single day and is completely unaffected, but Bernie's are a tapestry which she cannot stop reverently running her fingers over. Bernie, when her British reserve is broken, is as passionate as Serena hoped she might be, and Serena comes with her partner's name on her lips and her fingers inside of her. Bernie, albeit quieter than Serena, releases the most exquisite moan when she reaches her peak, and Serena wishes she could record the sound and play it back for her own pleasure, such is its strength.

Now that they've crossed that line, they spend a considerable amount of time sleeping together, both in the literal and sexual sense. Serena mainly spends the night at Bernie's because it is comfortable for Jason and easier for Serena to drive to after work. Her little AAU family have noticed her increased perkiness and drawn their own conclusions. She's pretty certain that Fletch and Raf have figured out that she is in a relationship with her nephew's ex-military carer, and finds she doesn't care.

They continue their little weekly coffee shop dates and one week Bernie is acting strange. When Serena offers to walk her to her appointment Bernie tells her there is no need, and Serena becomes suspicious. She sincerely hopes that Bernie is not going to turn out to be a cheat like Edward. Bernie blushes and mumbles something at the table which Serena doesn't quite hear. Only when she presses further does Bernie admit that she's been signed off from her appointment scheme because she's improved so much. Serena is incredulous.

"So why are you here?"

"I wanted to see you." Bernie shrugs. Serena's heart soars and she makes a snap decision.

"Well then, since you're here why don't we make your time worth it? Come and meet my colleagues."

Serena takes Bernie up to AAU where she introduces her to Fletch and Raf and Morven. She thinks they may remember Bernie from when she has been on the ward before but now she introduces her as her partner and they shower Bernie in respect. Serena pretends not to notice Fletch surreptitiously collecting money from one of the porters.

Serena tells Bernie to stick around for a while because the day is quiet and she needs a distraction from paperwork. Bernie sits down and thumbs through a medical journal on Serena's desk, always keen to keep up on recent developments.

Serena's pager goes off and she discovers that AAU is being sent up a patient from the ED, injured in a building site accident. She dashes to surgery, kissing Bernie quickly as she goes. The injuries are bad, and Serena isn't sure the patient is going to make it. She's trying her best to stem the bleeding but she's just not sure they can do enough. Suddenly, the intercom crackles to life and Bernie's calm voice is instructing them on what to do with the equipment they have to give the patient the best chance of survival. Miraculously, the patient stabilises and is sent up to ICU. Serena exits the theatre to find Bernie in the office waiting for her.

"Now I know why you're known as The Great Bernie Wolfe," Serena smiles, and Bernie does too.

"I miss the action of theatre," is her response.

Serena comes out of theatre one Friday evening to find a text message off Bernie on her phone.

'Come round to mine? X'

Serena doesn't hesitate in replying in the affirmative and leaving the hospital to reach Bernie's house. When she arrives Bernie greets her at the door with a kiss and leads her through to the garden at the back, where there is a table and two chairs by the fish pond, and fairy lights are strung on the surrounding trees. It looks beautiful. Bernie retreats into the house and returns with two plates of curry and two glasses of red wine on a tray. She places it between them and pulls out a chair for Serena to sit. Serena feels a little surreal, and wonders if such a romantic thing can actually be happening to her.

"What's going on Bernie?"

"Jason is out at another late museum event and I wanted to take you on a proper date but it is hard to surprise someone when you can't drive at the moment." Serena takes Bernie's hand across the table and kisses it gently.

"This is the most romantic thing anyone has ever done for me. Thank you Bernie."

They eat the food and share a (shop-bought, Bernie sheepishly admits) trifle for dessert. By the time Jason arrives back home they are curled up together on the sofa feeding one another strawberries from a punnet which Bernie has put on the coffee table. All in all, it is a night Serena doubts she will ever forget.

Serena is at work one day when Jason appears. She is a little surprised. Jason announces that he thinks he should work with her because he needs a job. Serena decides to make him CAA because that's within her power and it's all she thinks she can realistically do in the situation. Jason doesn't seem too fazed. Serena also clears with Hanssen something else which she hopes will be accepted with equally good grace.

Once her coffee date with Bernie finishes, Serena takes her by the hand and leads her to the lift. Bernie looks a little confused.

"You surprised me with a lovely meal so I'm now surprising you." Serena is excited about her plan, she thinks Bernie will like it. She leads her to the locker room and Bernie raises an eyebrow.

"Is this where you tell me about a locker room fantasy you have?" Her tone is playful and Serena winks at her before placing a wrapped parcel in her partner's hands. Bernie tentatively opens it and looks at Serena confusedly as she is left holding a pair of sky blue scrubs.

"Welcome to Holby City, Bernie. I've cleared with Hanssen for you to come and watch a few surgeries, maybe offer guidance and assist where necessary. Obviously you can't be allowed to jump straight in at the moment but at least it's something?" She's hopeful that she's done the right thing and knows she has when Bernie's face splits into an enormous grin.

"I love you Serena Campbell."


	4. Chapter 4

(a/n – so here we reach the end of this little journey between our characters in this AU. I do so hope that you've all enjoyed it. Your feedback is what I thrive on.)

Chapter 4

Jason Haynes is a proper grown up adult. He has a grown-up job which lets him earn money. He doesn't especially love his job but it is easy to do and he feels like he is very efficient at it. He works at Holby City Hospital as a CAA. This is good because his Auntie Serena also works at Holby City Hospital. She is the consultant surgeon and clinical lead on the Acute Assessment Unit. She is very good at her job and her staff are very friendly. What is even better is that Major Bernie, Jason's other favourite person, has also got a part-time job on AAU at Holby City Hospital.

Major Bernie has a proper job looking after Jason, but she is really a surgeon and so Jason understands that she wants to make sure she is still good at mending people. Also, he does not need that much help anymore because he has a job, so thinks it is silly that Major Bernie gets paid for looking after him. Major Bernie agrees with him. Jason travels into work with Auntie Serena (and Major Bernie if she is also working) and it is very nice. Usually Auntie Serena stays the night so she is already there in the morning. Sometimes she comes and picks him up if she has stayed at her house. This does not happen very often.

More and more frequently, Jason and Major Bernie stay overnight at Auntie Serena's house. She has a very nice house and Jason thinks he may just prefer it to Major Bernie's house. Auntie Serena's house has stairs. Jason realises that a bungalow was much more practical for Major Bernie when she was first discharged from the military but now thinks that she manages the stairs well enough because she is pretty much healed. Jason likes that Auntie Serena's house has stairs because going up and down stairs both burns calories and is fun. Also, Jason has a slinky which he has kept from his childhood and he can run it down Auntie Serena's stairs and remember his Mum. His slinky is green and made of plastic and does not always make it to the bottom of the steps. For his birthday, Major Bernie gives him a metal slinky that is copper coloured and very robust. Jason immediately wants to try it out. Next time they are at Auntie Serena's he does. The metal slinky is ever so slightly faster than his plastic one. He cannot wait to set up races between the two objects.

Jason likes working on AAU with his Auntie Serena. He thinks being a CAA is a little bit boring but he can manage the work easily enough. It is even better now Major Bernie is helping out on the ward too, because then he travels to and from Holby City Hospital with his two most favourite people in the world. As much as he enjoys travelling on buses, Auntie Serena's car is much more convenient and a lot faster.

Jason gets to visit a lot of wards in his new job as CAA. He does not especially like the job though. Once he has analysed all the wards and given them the correct spreadsheets and reports he finds that the heads of department do not always like him very much anymore. He completes his assessment of AAU last. He wanders around meeting interesting patients and seeing how Auntie Serena, Major Bernie and the rest of the staff work. He finds a loophole where things may not be as efficient as they could be.

Jason goes about his job diligently and notices that when Major Bernie is on the ward she and Auntie Serena spend a good proportion of their time staring at one another, and in Auntie Serena's case, at him too. He decides to inform them of this at the end of a shift where he catalogued them staring at one another for a total of two hours and thirteen minutes of the fourteen hour day.

He walks towards the consultant's office where he sees Major Bernie perched on Auntie Serena's desk holding a cup of tea. Auntie Serena is sat rather close to her on her chair, almost between her legs. She also has a cup of tea. Jason momentarily smiles, because this is good evidence to show that Major Bernie is once again healthy. Being able to hoist herself onto a desk means that she might be able to get back being really, really strong like the contestants on World's Strongest Man.

"I've finished collating," Jason begins.

"Excellent." Auntie Serena seems impressed by his proficiency. Jason continues.

"Patients are waiting more than an hour to be moved or discharged. They aren't able to go home." This seems tragic to Jason, he remembers when Major Bernie was on AAU and all he wanted was her to come home safely because the hospital was a scary and unfamiliar place. He continues with the logic behind his argument. "So new patients aren't able to be transferred, because Ms Campbell," he pauses, it feels unfamiliar to use Auntie Serena's normal name when she's Auntie Serena so he is trying to use her formal name instead.

"Serena, Jason." Auntie Serena corrects him and he furrows his brow, determined that he will eventually get the hang of not using the word Auntie when talking to her on the ward. Jason continues with his findings.

"Isn't signing off her patients' discharge papers in time. This is causing a backlog because you take too much time over this." He points at her to emphasise his point. She looks a bit startled.

"Hang on, hang on, let me get this right. You're saying I'm the root of the problem?" Auntie Serena asks him to clarify. Jason wonders if he was not clear enough in his explanations. He decides to be as honest as possible with her.

"You have spent a lot of the day staring at both me and Major Bernie, when you could have been working." This is true. He noticed it on a number of occasions when Auntie Serena could have been signing off patient discharge forms. She looks confused so Jason, thinking he may have missed something, remember what he should add. "Serena." He smiles at her, pleased with himself for remembering to eliminate the word 'Auntie', and turns to leave the office so she and Major Bernie can discuss ways in which they can help Auntie Serena to not stare so much. Major Bernie splutters a little bit and looks at the ceiling whilst Auntie Serena appears thoughtful. Jason decides to leave and find his tall Swedish friend Mr Hanssen, but offers them some advice before he leaves.

"I'm very pleased you are both in love with one another but you mustn't let it affect your efficiency. See you in an hour Major Bernie and Auntie Serena."

Another perk of working at the hospital is that Jason gets to see more of Mr Hanssen. The man is very straightforward and wise, and is teaching Jason all about idioms. He now realises that 'break a leg' does not mean somebody wishes violence upon another, amongst other things. Mr Hanssen often takes Jason up to the roof where they can eat their respective lunches in the tranquillity that being at such a great height offers.

One day it strikes Jason that he has never asked Mr Hanssen if he has been to Holby City Museum. Jason asks him. Mr Hanssen replies that he has been, but it was many years ago. Jason tells him that he should go, and describes all the exhibits in great detail to him, alongside the ones which are no longer on display. Mr Hanssen seems very content to listen to Jason. He tells Jason that he is pleased to hear he enjoys the museum so much. Jason asks Mr Hanssen if he has been to any other interesting museums. Mr Hanssen describes one which showcases a Swedish ship which sank on its maiden voyage. Jason is enthralled and vows to seek out a documentary or book about the Vasa which he can read. He thinks that he could maybe visit his friend Pete at the college library. He might be able to help.

They go back to Auntie Serena's house that night and Jason is excited. He has a corkboard and Major Bernie is helping him to fix it to his wall. Auntie Serena has said that the room is now basically Jason's so he can decorate it as he pleases. He has several posters which he has bought from the gift shop at Holby City Museum which he wants to stick up. But he dislikes using sticky tack as it makes marks on walls. And sticky tape rips the poster when removed. After much consideration, he has decided that a cork board and drawing pins will be the neatest way of displaying his posters. He told Auntie Serena as much and she seemed thrilled, said Elinor didn't have as much consideration for the decorating when she had posters of boybands all over her walls.

Major Bernie helps Jason to move the desk out of the way so that she can put up a stepladder and hang the board to Jason's exact requirements. He sits on his bed and directs her as to where to move it before she screws it onto the wall. Once that is done Jason sets about organising his posters in the pattern they will be displayed in. Major Bernie asks if he needs any assistance but he declines, he thinks he can manage this part by himself as an independent grown-up. He does tell Major Bernie he will request her assistance when the desk needs to be moved back against the wall. Jason pins his posters and ensures there is space left on the board for the posters he is still planning on buying with his wages. He is pleased.

Auntie Serena also spends a lot of time at Jason and Major Bernie's house. Jason likes it. Auntie Serena is quite clever and knows a substantial number of answers to the television quiz shows which Jason loves to watch. Sometimes she even beats Major Bernie in the number of questions she is able to get right. Occasionally Major Bernie and Auntie Serena will get complacent whilst they watch television with Jason, and he will have to admonish them for getting distracted and kissing one another. He helpfully suggests that he sits between them to prevent the issue but they say they will learn to manage their distractions and so he does not follow through with the threat. He's secretly glad he does not have to. He prefers his armchair to the sofa.

Jason decides he does not want to be a CAA for the rest of his life. One day a lady called Imelda Cousins arrives on the ward and his Auntie Serena does not seem to like her very much. Major Bernie is not working until later on in the day so Jason spends his time trying to get his Auntie Serena to see that Ms Cousins is not very well. She tells him that he would make a good porter and Jason thinks that he agrees. He asks his Auntie Serena if he can have an application form and she seems wary of the idea. But Jason says he is just going to ask Major Bernie anyway. He thinks Major Bernie will help him to apply for the job. Being a porter sounds exciting. And there's a shortage of them so he would be helping people and not annoying them. Ms Cousins seems to know Major Bernie.

"Bernie Wolfe trauma specialist? Didn't she get medically retired from the RAMC? Rumour has it that she's wanted to go and set up a new trauma centre in the Ukraine. She appears to have been lying low for a few years but this could be her ticket out of loneliness."

Auntie Serena doesn't look impressed by this revelation and Jason thinks Ms Cousins is very uninformed regarding Major Bernie so he decides to be helpful and let her know the truth.

"Major Bernie isn't lonely and I don't think she would like to go to Ukraine. It's very cold there and her bad leg hurts more in colder temperatures. Also she's been doing some work here part time and she's not lonely at all. She's got me." Ms Cousins looks a little bit surprised.

"Oh. No husband to speak of though?" Jason thinks Ms Cousins is being very presumptuous.

"No. Major Bernie kisses girls. Just like Auntie Serena." Auntie Serena coughs at this and turns bright red and Ms Cousins looks at her oddly.

"You what?"

"Major Bernie kisses girls. Well, she actually just kisses Auntie Serena." Jason places a hand on his chin in thought. "And Auntie Serena isn't a girl, she's a woman. Major Bernie loves her very much and I think if Major Bernie were to go to set up a trauma unit in Ukraine Auntie Serena would be very sad. So would I. Major Bernie knows a lot about military history and I like talking to her about it. Have you ever been to Holby City Museum Ms Cousins?"

Ms Cousins does not seem to be following on logically and Auntie Serena looks a bit flustered. Eventually Ms Cousins tells him that she has not been to Holby City Museum so Jason decides to tell her all about it until he has to get back to his job. He reminds Auntie Serena that he would like to be a porter before he leaves.

Major Bernie arrives that afternoon and, as expected, she is happy for Jason to apply to be a porter if that is what he wants to do. She also meets Ms Cousins and tells her that she does not want to go to Ukraine because if she were there then there would only be one thing she could think about, and that would be Auntie Serena. She then also says she would also think about Jason. He is grouped with Auntie Serena as Major Bernie's family and Jason feels like he likes that. He, Major Bernie and Auntie Serena are a family. He still misses his Mum but now he has a new family to look after him. He thinks his Mum would be pleased that even though she has gone he now has two new maternal figures to help him through the struggles he faces in life.

Jason becomes a porter. It is fun and interesting and he gets to see lots of areas of the hospital. Sometimes he works on Darwin and sometimes he works on AAU and sometimes he works on other wards, too. He thinks that he is being helpful and is showing how strong he is at pushing patients around, just like when he used to help his Mum lift boxes in the newsagents and pretend he was on World's Strongest Man. His colleagues are not especially interesting to talk to, though. Often he prefers to find his Auntie Serena or Major Bernie and eats his lunch with them. If not he will see if Mr Hanssen is free and the CEO will take him up to the roof where they will share sandwiches and a flask of tea. Once, Jason also ate his lunch in the AAU staffroom with Fletch the Budgie who told him all about what he does when he goes to the gym. All in all, Jason thinks he likes Holby City Hospital. It may be his fifth favourite place in the world (first is Holby City Museum, second is Major Bernie's house, third is his Mum's old house, fourth is Auntie Serena's house).

Major Bernie now goes to the gym again. Jason asks if he can go with her once so she lets him, pays for a one day pass for him to try out some of the equipment. He doesn't like it very much. Major Bernie stays with him the whole time, and guides him through how to use the different machines. But Jason finds that his weak muscular strength and poor sense of coordination render him a risk as he tries to push bars upwards. Also, he ends up a sweaty and sticky mess and he dislikes the idea of using public showers so he stops and thanks Major Bernie for her time. Says he would rather watch her go about her fitness routine for the afternoon. Major Bernie lets him and Jason can see how strong she is and knows that the army definitely helped with that. When they go home Auntie Serena is waiting in Major Bernie's house with a hug for him and a kiss for Major Bernie. Jason tells her that he enjoyed watching Major Bernie work out because she is very strong and skilled. Auntie Serena says she agrees and thinks she would like to watch Major Bernie work out sometime. Major Bernie coughs a little bit and then asks Jason if he wants to have the first shower. He admits that he does. When he returns to the sitting room from his shower Major Bernie and Auntie Serena are both panting and look like they've been exercising. Jason asks if Major Bernie was trying to teach Auntie Serena some sit ups on the floor of the room. Auntie Serena says 'something like that' and Jason turns on the television. He thinks that maybe it was push-ups instead of sit ups.

Bernie Wolfe loves her life. She now works part time at Holby City Hospital thanks to her amazing partner Serena Campbell, who just so happens to be the auntie of Jason, the young man Bernie cares for. Bernie gets to spend hours with her little family unit, either at her own house or Serena's, and it is the best thing she's ever had in her whole entire life. She's now more or less as healthy as she's ever going to get, and knows that her strength is returning to her.

Jason now has a job as a porter and is much preferring it to when he was CAA. To Jason, the amount of pay is not an issue as long as he is enjoying himself. She admires him for his enthusiastic nature and pragmatic approach to life. She also knows that it is unlikely that she will continue being his carer for long now that he has a stable income of his own and so can be classed as an independent adult.

One day, she is called away from AAU to a difficult case which she argues with other staff about. She knows that an atriocaval shunt is the right choice of method to use but others disagree because it is risky. Bernie has no time for them to mess about erring on the side of caution when life needs to be lived in the moment. Anyway, she's a good surgeon and knows she can pull it off, no matter what research papers may say. She yells at everyone in the theatre, turns back into the army major she once was, and completes the procedure. It is a success. Mr Hanssen approaches Bernie as she is coming out of theatre and asks her to attend a meeting with him the next morning. She is not scheduled to be on shift. She furrows her brow and ploughs on, hoping she does not get dismissed.

Later on that day, Jac Naylor corners her and they have a dispute. Jac accuses her of thinking she can do as she pleases just because she's sleeping with Serena Campbell. Bernie tells Jac that who she is sleeping with does not correlate with how good a surgeon she is. The procedure was a success and defied the odds. Bernie has lived a life of being a minority fighting against the majority opinion. She isn't going to bow down to it now.

Jason is out at Holby City Museum in the evening, helping them to rearrange and clean some of the exhibits. He goes off to his volunteering session happy and excited, so Serena suggests to Bernie that they go for a meal in town to celebrate Bernie's success at wooing the hospital. Serena seems to be thrilled that Bernie performed such a difficult procedure, and cannot help looking smugly at her and telling Bernie she has talented fingers. Bernie blushes and hopes that the next day Mr Hanssen is not going to dismiss her.

They go to an Italian restaurant with an extensive wine list, and gaze at one another longingly over their wine glasses, sharing bites of pasta and chicken as the evening progresses. They finish off by sharing a raspberry cheesecake, alternating bites between each other, eyes dark as they lick at the morsels of creamy food which they feed to each other. Once the meal is over they exit hand in hand and go to collect Jason from his evening activity. They return to Serena's house and spend the night caressing and touching and kissing. Bernie comes apart readily, breathing Serena's name and hoping that somehow she can stay like this forever.

It turns out Serena is also invited to the meeting with Mr Hanssen the next morning. He shuffles some papers until they are all perfectly aligned and looks directly at Bernie, who feels more than a little like she's about to be reprimanded by her old sergeant major, the one they called The Ghost.

"Ms Wolfe. What you did yesterday was a tricky and risky procedure, one which the theatres of Holby City Hospital cannot always deliver." She nods at him.

"But I delivered it." She cannot help the remark as it falls from her lips, she's spent her entire life defending herself against self-righteous men. The edges of his mouth creep into a smile.

"It seems that you turned one of our theatres into a field hospital for the day."

"I wouldn't go as far as that, but-" Mr Hanssen interrupts her before she can continue.

"And that certain events have led to people questioning your role here." She feels her blood run cold. He's going to dismiss her. She feels Serena tense beside her.

"If you're talking about my wanting to take control…" Bernie trails off because of course that's what he's talking about. She went against the wishes of members of hospital staff who on paper are more senior than she is. Mr Hanssen continues.

"Namely that we are failing to utilise your unique talents in the best possible way." Now Bernie is confused.

"Right," is all she can manage to say after a pause. Even Serena appears to be speechless.

"You feel that the trauma facilities here in Holby are inadequate do you?" Bernie is not sure if he is trying to antagonise her or genuinely wants an answer.

"It's not just the equipment it's the training, the staff…" Bernie trails off, realising telling him his own hospital's shortcomings may not be the best possible course of action to save herself.

"The NHS is living under fiscally challenging times, Ms Wolfe." Bernie nods.

"I'm only too aware of that." That's it then, Bernie thinks. He's going to tell her the hospital cannot afford her. Her happy little bubble of surgery is going to be popped right now.

"So any budgetary outlay has to be carefully considered." He's being mean now, she thinks. Toying with her. She exhales.

"Agreed." Job done, she's dismissed.

"And having said that I'm willing to ask the board for funds for a complete overhaul of the trauma system on AAU." Bernie's head snaps towards the CEO. He cannot possibly be saying what she thinks he is saying. Beside her, Serena gasps.

"Have you, erm. Serena?" She curses herself for seeming anything less than composed. He smiles at her. Serena looks equally as shocked, he clearly hasn't run this past her either.

"If you're willing to take on a fulltime position as trauma consultant, the position is yours. Congratulations, Ms Wolfe." Henrik Hanssen dismisses them and as soon as they are out of his office Serena reaches up and kisses her. She's shocked, they both are. But she's got a future, a future in trauma surgery at Holby City Hospital beside her partner. And that feels like the best feeling in the world.

To celebrate her new job, Bernie agrees to go to Holby City Museum with Jason and Serena at the weekend, because he wants them to admire the artefacts which he spent an evening cleaning and repositioning. They have a wonderful morning wandering round, spending a considerable amount of time in the British Military in World War Two exhibit which Jason is still very pleased about. Bernie smiles as he lists facts and even engages other visitors in conversation about some of the pieces on offer. She's so very proud of him, and cannot imagine her life without him in it. Agreeing to care for Jason is possibly the greatest decision she ever made in life, Bernie thinks.

As they continue to different sections, Bernie is thrilled about what little help she now needs in order to navigate herself up and down the many steps which are inside the museum. She can now just hold Serena's hand without having to grip onto her arm for fear of crashing down a flight of stairs. It's nice, Bernie thinks, being so open and spending so much time in such a peaceful place with the people she loves.

They're reaching the exit when Jennifer the head curator appears and asks if Jason, Bernie and Serena will accompany her through to one of the staff offices. Bernie is a little bit confused as to why this is happening but she agrees. Jason, having been through the staff only door many times before, skips ahead excitedly. They sit down and Jennifer explains that a permanent vacancy for a curator has come up at the museum as one of their staff is moving to a different city. Jason looks sad as he says he likes David and will be sorry to see him go as he was so knowledgeable about munitions. Jennifer smiles gently at Jason then tells them that they would like to offer Jason the job, should he wish to accept it. Jason's grin may be the biggest Bernie has ever seen and she herself feels a bloom of pride at the thought of him working full time at the museum. He may like being a porter, but there is no job she thinks Jason would like any better in the world than being a curator at the museum where his heart lies. Beside her she hears Serena sniffle happily as Jason shakes Jennifer's hand and chatters away happily.

They go and get some celebratory cake at the museum café, where they sit as a little family unit. As she sips at her tea, Bernie is content. Feelings of safety wash over her. After the chaos of her life, she's finally found some stability. It makes her happy.

As the weeks progress and the trauma bay gets built, Bernie can feel herself positively fizzing with excitement. Normally, she doesn't view change as something to be treasured, has always preferred sticking with the tried and trusted aspects of life, but now she's raring to go. Jason hands in his notice to the hospital, and while she misses his presence on the wards every single day, she cannot help but smile when every evening he returns home to dinner with tales of behind the scenes documenting or unusual visitors who he has spoken to about the various artefacts. In fact, one week Jason comes home thrilled and says that multiple visitors have left comments in the visitors book about how much they enjoyed their visit thanks to Jason's extensive knowledge. Serena, who is eating dinner with them, hugs Jason fiercely and he invites Bernie into it, a rare display of close affection. Bernie treasures the moment.

The trauma bay gets opened and Bernie finds herself with more and more exciting cases to deal with. Obviously, she would never wish harm upon anyone, but she is glad to be faced once more with challenging injuries which stretch her surgical skills. The only problem with the trauma bay and the associated red phone is that there are increasing numbers of shifts which run over due to last minute trauma patients.

This unsettles Jason, as now he sometimes finishes his shift at the museum and does not know which house to go to for his dinner. Previously, either Bernie or Serena would message him but if they are both in theatre this is now not always possible. So Jason, as methodical as ever, asks them to come up with a rota. Bernie and Serena plan out which nights will happen where and let Jason know of this routine. All in all, it is a very efficient system. But Bernie cannot help but think that it is all a little bit silly. They are pretty much a family living out of two houses by this point, and Bernie is not sure what the point of it all is. On the rota, Jason asked for more nights to be spent at Serena's house because it is both bigger and, now he is familiar with it, he prefers the bus route to the museum from near her house. Bernie thinks that maybe a serious family discussion is in order. She just needs to prepare herself to bring up the commitment she's thinking of. Soon, she will do. Hopefully.

Serena never thought that the happiest moments of her life would occur when she was well into middle age. But they have. She has a wonderful nephew who has managed to get a job that he both loves and excels at. She has a beautiful partner who loves her as much as she loves in return. Even her daughter is now on amicable terms with her. And, her partner works with her in the trauma bay she finally has on AAU. It's the dream.

She alternates the days her family spend at her house and Bernie's bungalow. It's quite nice to have a routine, she thinks. And now she and Bernie, if they finish early, can head to Albie's with their colleagues and have a drink before they head to meet Jason. Bernie has slotted into the extended AAU family wonderfully, and Serena feels a little thrum of pleasure whenever she watches her partner joke with Fletch or discuss a television show with Morven. And, Serena thinks, the way that Bernie climbs onto a bar stool is borderline obscene. Standing behind her and gazing as her partner hoists her leg up and over to straddle the otherwise boring piece of furniture is quickly becoming one of Serena's favourite pastimes.

Sometimes, Bernie looks at Serena like she's about to say something she's been thinking about for a while, but just as quickly she shuts back down and instead Serena finds herself with her partner on top of her, those soft lips assaulting her neck with exceptional efficiency. Serena suddenly doesn't care about whatever it was Bernie was going to say. She's still around, so Serena doesn't think there's any danger of her running away. The whole Kiev conversation with Imelda clarified that. Serena still feels a bit bad that she didn't notice how unwell Imelda was until Jason pointed it out to her. Lifelong take it to the grave grudges can cloud one's vision somewhat.

Serena thinks that, having been in a relationship with Bernie for nearly two years, they should consider moving into one house together. They never spend any time apart now, and it seems impractical to forever alternate days based on Jason's specific schedule and requirements. Serena personally is not too fussed about which house they move into, or indeed if they buy a new one. Obviously her house is bigger and so more accommodating for Elinor, but if Jason really doesn't want to leave Bernie's bungalow then she's sure Ellie can manage on a sofa bed if she ever does come back to stay.

She brings up the conversation one night when she, Bernie and Jason have cleared away the remnants of their fish and chip night. Jason has sighed contentedly and expressed how much he prefers the chip shop closer to Serena's house. Bernie also agrees. Serena, for he part, takes a deep breath then addresses them both.

"Have you thought about us all moving into one house?" She expects a response of some description, but not one which involves Bernie launching herself across the empty space between them on the sofa and hugging her fiercely.

"I've been wanting to bring this up for weeks," is her breathy response whispered somewhere in the vicinity of Serena's left earlobe. It is punctuated by a brief kiss to her jaw. Serena can feel Bernie's immense relief at Serena's bringing up of the topic but cannot help but ask why Bernie didn't just bring up the subject sooner. Her awkward army medic shrugs and looks to the side guiltily.

"I didn't want to seem presumptuous." And of course that's it, Serena thinks. Of course Bernie didn't want to pin all of her hopes on Serena wanting to commit to a real and solid future with her. Now Serena's brought up the matter the guilt is gone, replaced by relief and joy. They turn to look at Jason who has a thoughtful expression on his face and is also constructing what looks like two complex lists.

"I am weighing up the positives and negatives of us all living in each house. Instinctually, I prefer Major Bernie's bungalow because it helped me to feel happy and safe again," Bernie sniffs and Serena squeezes her hand comfortingly. "But," Jason continues. "I feel that Auntie Serena's house is the much more sensible option for us to all cohabit in as a family. Major Bernie no longer struggles with stairs, the travel routes are preferable to both Holby City Museum and he hospital, and," Jason pauses and squints at some points he has highlighted. "This chip shop is far superior, as previously mentioned this evening. I believe we would be happier here in the long-term, though it saddens me to leave behind Major Bernie's bungalow, especially Cameron and Charlotte in the garden pond."

That's a point Serena hasn't considered. She has seen Bernie's koi, and knows that both the soldier and her nephew are very fond of them, especially when they're not feeling stable. Serena has witnessed both of them going to sit by the fish pond on a day when they are extremely stressed to look at the comforting movements of Cam and Charlotte. Bernie also looks down-heartened at the thought of saying goodbye to both her fish and the bungalow that became her safe haven after her medical retirement from the military. Serena has an idea.

"If we are to live here, how about we build a pond for Cameron and Charlotte in this garden? It's certainly big enough to fit one." Jason looks thrilled.

"Could I help to design it?"

"Of course you could," Bernie smiles at him then turns to Serena. "Getting a proper koi pond dug in won't be cheap. Mine came with the bungalow but I remember the guy I bought the fish off saying they were hundreds of pounds for the most basic pond." Serena shrugs.

"If we're only living in the one house then we will save on the current two lots of bills so I'm sure if we combine some of our wages we can afford it."

"I'll also pay." Jason adds in. "I don't have to pay rent on a house or flat so I have lots of my salary as savings."

"That's decided then," Bernie grins. "We'll move our stuff to here."

"Yes!" Jason agrees, then his face falls slightly. "I'll just be sad to leave the bungalow too. I've liked having two homes."

The sentiment must play on Bernie's mind because Serena comes home (on the day she worked alone because Bernie and Jason were sorting the rest of their things into Serena's house now the koi pond was finished) to find Bernie going over some figures in the sitting room. Bernie looks up when she sits down but waits until Jason emerges from his room to tell them what she's been working out.

"Jason," Bernie looks at him. "I've been working some things out and I think I have an idea. If I rent the bungalow instead of selling it, I can make enough income to keep us all living comfortably here, especially as I'm now back working full-time as a surgeon. Then, when you feel like you want to move out and live on your own, you can have the bungalow as your home."

Jason is thrilled and hugs Major Bernie in response to her idea. Then he asks if he can check over the sums and agrees that she is right about all she has worked out. It is a realistic option. He also seems very excited by the prospect of one day having his own house. Serena cannot help but feel a little bit sad at the thought of Jason not living with them in the future. She was fine with Elinor moving out, but Jason just seems so much more vulnerable. And, Serena supposes, because she missed out on so much of his life, she's loathe to let him go now. Serena thinks that's why it is so good Bernie is also still Jason's carer. She understands that while he has specific needs, he cannot be protected forever should he wish to fully embrace independent living. As they settle into family life under one roof, Serena cannot help but feel like she's finally got everything she wanted.

While living together is nothing new, that night still feels like a momentous milestone in their relationship. They're finally together, under one roof, surrounded by their own love and care for one another. They wait for Jason to head up to bed and the house to have been quiet for long enough that it's safe to assume that he's asleep, and then Serena takes Bernie's hand and leads her up off the sofa and to the stairs, where Bernie stops suddenly. Serena looks at her worriedly.

"Bernie, are you oka-"

She is cut off by Major Berenice Griselda Wolfe, ex-army medic, sweeping her off the floor and into her arms before slowly and surely carrying her up the stairs. It's not perfectly romantic because they're not young and agile and when she's been put down again at the top of the stairs Serena notices Bernie taking a moment to catch her breath, but it's wonderful all the same. Bernie grins at her wolfishly.

"I said that one day I would be strong enough again to carry you up those stairs, Serena Campbell."

"That you did, Bernie, that you did."

And without any further preamble, Serena guides them the rest of the way to what is now their shared bedroom. Living together may not be anything new, but they still spend that first night together as if it is their first. Serena certainly isn't complaining.

They all live together happily, and Jason reaches a stage in his life where he no longer technically needs care and is mulling over trying living in the bungalow at weekends. Bernie also doesn't want to keep claiming the carer's money she gets, now she's also got a job and a partner. She, Jason and Serena inform the carer's agency, and Bernie is no longer Jason's official carer. He no longer has an official anyone. This distresses him more than Serena thought it would. She speaks with Bernie one evening while Jason is at a museum evening showcase and they get everything sorted.

On Jason's next birthday, he unwraps a photo frame containing a certificate which Serena and Bernie have made together. He reads it out.

"This is to celebrate that Jason Haynes has become unofficially adopted by his Major Bernie and Auntie Serena. They promise to treat him with utmost respect and help him with any difficulties he may have because they love him." As he reads it Serena gets a tear in her eye. She had expected to get emotional as Jason read it but not this much. Jason himself looks a bit weepy, which is rare for him. Bernie, beside Serena, is doing her best to maintain a stiff upper lip, but even her supposedly unending British reserve looks like it is wavering.

"This is wonderful. Thank you Major Bernie. Thank you Auntie Serena. I felt sad when I lost my Mum but now I have two more, even if you're not allowed to be so officially. I think I might suggest an exhibit at Holby City Museum about orphans and refugees and the families they find. I might even get to display this certificate." Serena breaks down then, and it is that which finally crumbles Bernie. Jason looks at them for a while.

"Just to check, you are crying because you are happy, aren't you?"

"Yes Jason, we are." Bernie laughs through her tears.

"I don't think I could ever be happier." Serena murmurs.

And it's true. Serena doesn't think she will ever be happier. Together, they're the strongest family unit anyone could ever hope for. Together, they've met on some sort of no man's land where all of their individual battles have been won simply by them making a truce with one another. Jason is no longer consumed by the sadness and grief after the loss of his mother. Bernie is no longer consumed by the pain and emptiness of the loss of her commission. Serena is no longer consumed by the loneliness and helplessness as a result of the loss of her family. It may have taken years, but together they've made a home out of the no man's land they found themselves in. And it's the best home any of them could ever have asked for.

The End.

(a/n – was that emotional to write? Yes! Am I glad with how it turned out? I think so! Your feedback is much appreciated.)


End file.
